It was the first PupFest: An Irish Faire held March 19, 2016 at Nashville Pet Products in Hermitage, TN, featuring five shelters, Irish music, and the Apollo Food Truck. We had a wonderful morning hike with our shelter pups.

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Famished after our hike, even we humans had to eat! Business was bustling at the Apollo Food Truck, but Cassie (a food truck worker), couldn’t take her eyes off of Roc. Roc had arrived from Cheatham County Animal Control (CCAC). The shelter was temporarily closing due to much needed renovations.

Finding a home for Roc and the other dogs at this shelter was a top priority. Would the luck of the Irish be in Roc’s favor?

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I spent the better part of the afternoon walking Roc alongside the Apollo Food Truck; Cassie couldn’t leave her work post, and having Roc nearby definitely made Cassie’s day. She totally delighted in watching Roc… so much so that she decided to adopt the precious pup! I became the de facto liaison between Cassie and TJ Jordi (the Director of Cheatham County Animal Control), shuffling the paperwork back and forth until Cassie got the final approval to adopt dear Roc. All that was left was the adoption fee payment; as adopting a dog that day was not on Cassie’s to-do list, she didn’t have the extra cash on hand. Needless to say, I was determined to do whatever it might take to make Roc’s adoption happen.

There’s nothing more our volunteers cherish more than seeing a dog find a permanent, loving home. It’s a priceless reward that touches all our hearts.

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Without hesitation, I paid the adoption fee, later telling Cassie it was an early Christmas present! Big smiles followed.

That day Roc, now known as Rocky, sniffed and licked his way to the pot of gold at the end of his rainbow… and so did I!

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Thanks to all the hard work and effort from our volunteers, five dogs were adopted that day! There must have been four-leaf clovers aplenty in the field that day. A bit of luck and a lot of love is exactly what it takes to find homes for these precious pups!