Leslie Keller Books

This is the final installment of Tilly's story and a bit longer than my regular post. On the third week of her wandering she lucked upon the back entrance of a restaurant. A kindly woman would toss her scraps at the end of the night and leave her a bowl of fresh water. Tilly would scurry under a rusty metal dumpster to hide until she felt it was safe to creep out. When the woman would call Tilly's body would wiggle in excitement. Maybe this would be her new family. One night the lady looped a rope around her neck and put her inside a cage. Tilly whimpered and her body trembled in fear.  She was taken to a new place where there were many dogs, all barking and many frightened. This was different from where Tilly had grown up. These dogs were all manner of breeds and shapes. Some were fierce and growled as Tilly was led past their enclosure, some barked a greeting and leapt at their doors. Tilly was placed in a cement floor run with four other small dogs but here there was f

This is the fourth installment of Tilly's story. Tilly grew accustomed to her life as days turned into weeks which became months.   Puppies were born and removed and just as quickly she was pregnant again. She didn't mind the puppies because she longed for their company. In her heart she dreamed of a real family - one who would never leave her and one she could give all of the love for which her heart ached. Tilly's second summer scorched all of the dogs at the puppy mill with a heat so intense it was unbearable.  Metal cages seared their paws and the pungent odor of feces and urine permeated their fur. Tilly was moved to a new cage as she struggled with her latest pregnancy. Her owner didn't want to risk losing the valuable income she provided. Her new enclosure was only one level above the ground and closed with a lever-type clasp. Tilly watched closely to see how it worked. One night, only weeks after giving birth to her pups, when the human closed her pen, she

I struggle to write this story.  Although a work of fiction, it is unbearably difficult for me to imagine what Tilly's life may have been. Researching puppy mills leaves the imprint of their distress on my heart and in my head. So the good news for you, my reader, is that after this installment I must move on her with story to a more positive place. As Tilly grew her coat became long and where it should have been silky it was matted. Her vision was sometimes blurry from eye infections and her tummy was always empty.  Eventually, she was moved out of the pen where she had made friends with the other pups into a new space. She could see row after row cages with dogs, some small like her and others like monsters. They howled until her ears hurt. She knew they were tired and hungry just like her. Each day when the man came and dumped food into the little dish she shared with two other dogs, she pounced and gobbled every morsel she could. Despite her small size, her heart was big an

When Tilly reached the ripe old age of ten weeks, she was yanked from her momma's side. Crammed into a new cage with eight other females, she howled for her family. She didn't know these other pups. They smelled different. They tasted different and they didn't like to play the way she had with her siblings. Tilly howled until her little throat was so sore she could only whimper.  She clawed at the bars and tried to dig her way out. "You may as well get used to it here." whispered a sable colored miniature poodle. "I want my momma!" Tilly wailed. "You won't see your momma again." "She'll find me." "This is your new home. Exhausted and shaking, Tilly crammed herself into a tiny ball in the corner of the cage. Minutes ticked by until Tilly finally gave in to restless sleep, plagued by dreams where she searched for her family to no avail. She woke with a start as the other pups howled. Everyone was hungry and

This is my version of Tilly's story - it is completely fictionalized as we will never know what really happened to this little "Velcro" dog. It may have been dark when she was born, but even if the sun had been blaring, she came into this life under a cloud. Her tiny body revealed no indication of her royal ancestry - her family tree descended from the Bichon and bred as companion dogs for Cuban aristocracy. Her bloodlines certified as pure, despite the cross breeding through recent generations. No one would have guessed by the many dogs kenneled near her that the breed had almost reached extinction before the Cuban revolution in 1959 brought a few of the dogs to the United States. When Tilly's eyes opened the first time she saw her mother with overgrown coat, matted with feces which pelted them all from the cage above. There wasn't much room for her Momma, two brothers and sister but it still felt good to snuggle in together. Tilly didn't know there cou

I must start this story at the beginning, well actually, it's the ending which makes it a backward way to begin. Once there was a very handsome fellow named, Parker. He had a rough few years before Julie came along and took him into her loving arms. She drove for hours to rescue this chap from California and the years slipped by quickly - too quickly, in fact, for his time in this world was short. He left his print on her heart, his bed cold, his things neglected. How do you know when you can stop the grieving?  How long is long enough when you miss your best friend? How do you fill the empty space he left behind? Many would say you wait and let time heal. Some would say to run out and find a new love. I believe that your heart knows when it's ready, long before it registers on your brain. And so began Julie's mission - she didn't know if she was ready. She only knew that she had an ocean of love to give and a drive to give it to one who needed it. Thus, the sea