Senior Dog With Terminal Cancer Wins $35k For Rescue That Saved Her

This story begins with a kid named Raven who told her mom that she wanted to adopt a senior dog because “no dog should ever die alone in a shelter.”

Raven’s mom, Melissa Davis, was so touched by Raven’s wishes that they immediately went to BARCS in Baltimore and found Kaylee, an 11-year-old mix who desperately needed a family. She had health issues and her previous family decided they could no longer care for her. But the Davis family decided they could and would.

Two weeks later, however, Kaylee’s new family discovered that on top of her other various health issues, Kaylee has terminal cancer. She was given only two months to live. So the Davis family decided to give Kaylee the best life ever with the time she had left. They created a bucket list for Kaylee that included things like:

1. Find a forever home (CHECK!)

2. Go out for a burger

3. Go out for ice cream

4. Have breakfast in bed

5. Celebrate my birthday (pictured)

6. Go for a (short) hike

7. Go on a picnic

8. Have a doggie massage

9. Go out for coffee with mom

10. Go to the beach

11. See a solar eclipse

The Davis family is having a ball and so is Kaylee! She’s lived past her prognosis and is enjoying every moment. As Kaylee’s medical bills piled up, the Davis kids happily gave up the vacation to Disney World they’d been saving for. “It wouldn’t be fun without Kaylee anyway!” they reasoned.

Recently, Kaylee’s story caught the attention of the Petco Foundation’s Holiday Wishes campaign (www.petcofoundation.org/holidaywishes). Her story was awarded a Holiday Wishes grant for BARCS worth $10,000! And, her story was so popular that she also won The People’s Choice Award where people across the nation voted for their favorite stories. Kaylee’s Bucket List story came in first place, winning another $25,000 for BARCS. Talk about giving back!

Melissa Davis is so grateful to BARCS for taking a chance on Kaylee that she’s thrilled to be able to give back to them with funds that will go towards saving even more amazing lives – both dog and human.

As Melissa puts it, “We thought we were rescuing Kaylee that day, but as it turns out, she was rescuing us. We didn’t know what we were missing until she was here.”

More info: petcofoundation.org