11/12/2025
đź’—A TRIBUTE TO DAISYđź’—
Longtime volunteer Michael Venokur wrote this loving tribute to HFG alumna, Daisy.
Anneliese and I are heartbroken. We had to say goodbye to Daisy, also known as Sprinkle Pup. She was 14 years old, and we adopted her (foster failure) from Home Fur Good when she was two.
Daisy was a handful at first. She was originally adopted as a puppy and returned to HFG two years later, but she was not in good shape. She growled at everyone in the beginning. I was there when she was first brought back. I sat in front of her kennel for two hours with her bark-spitting and being all ferocious. I thought, challenge accepted.
Two hours later she let me pet her nose through the grate. I would stop by after work for the sole purpose of gaining Daisy's trust. After a while, if she was in the yard kennel and saw me come through the gate she would start wagging her tail. I eventually decided to go into the fenced yard with her. She let me in, and I found out she knew some commands.
Twelve years ago, the shelter was moving to its current location and the director at the time asked Anneliese and I if we would foster Daisy during the transition since I made great progress with her. Well, by the end of the transition Anneliese was determined there was no way we could bring her back to the shelter. She knew I wouldn't be able to handle the judgement of Daisy: "Why did you return me?” I'm a sucker and Anneliese knew it.
Anneliese and I watched Daisy transform into a different dog. She was very loving. The only main issue was with food. I was the only one that could be near her if she was eating. But anytime anyone was upset she would sense it and be a Velcro dog.
We were honored to be her mom and dad, and she will be greatly missed. It just won't be the same. We love you Sprinkle Pup.
