A mark that will last forever
By Stephen Messenger
Published on April 15, 2023 at 9:01 AM
Every day for past 12 years, the lives of Madison Best and her family have been much brighter than they would have otherwise been.
That’s because, over a decade ago, they welcomed this sweet dog named Dixie into their hearts and home.
“She’s been with me and by my side through all the good times and the bad,” Best told The Dodo. “She has always been the best cuddler and playmate for the kids. Our two oldest daughters have grown up with her.”
But now Dixie and her family share more than just a lifetime of happy memories.
Being an older dog, Dixie’s coat of yellow fur has faded to white in places. However, there is one small feature that’s remained unchanged since her puppyhood.
On Dixie’s rear paw is a tiny patch of brown fur. Aptly, it’s shaped like a little heart.
“[It’s] the only mark she has on her,” Best said.
Best had been thinking it would be nice to honor Dixie in some way, but inspiration finally struck around her daughter’s birthday. Having reached the right age, she’d hoped to get her first tattoo — the subject of which was something near and dear to the whole family.
“We decided what better tattoo to get than to get Dixie’s heart?” Best said.
The tattoo turned out so nicely that Best and her other daughter decided to get one on their “paws” too.
It was the sweetest way to honor the pup they love so much.
“She’s our best girl,” Best said. “We are so proud to finally match her little heart.”
Just by being her sweet self, Dixie has left an indelible mark on her family — now, both inside and out. For Best, it’s only fitting.
“Everyone says they have the best damn dog, but she’s the best damn dog,” she said.
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Rescued Baby Opossum Sneaks Out Of Incubator To Snuggle Unlikely Friend
“[They] decided to cling to each other for comfort.”
When a baby animal is rescued and brought to a wildlife rescue, they need lots of comfort. For these babies, there’s nothing more reassuring than the company of someone equally small and fuzzy — even if they’re not the same species.
Earlier this month, Raptor Center of Tampa Bay (RCTB) took in an orphaned baby opossum who weighed just 46 grams. They didn’t have any other baby opossums at the center, so they placed her in an enclosure by herself.
That night, Nancy Murrah, wildlife rehabilitator and president and founder of RCTB, discovered that the opossum was missing from her enclosure. Murrah quickly realized that the crafty opossum had somehow managed to escape her enclosure and crawl in with the baby squirrels.
Snuggled down peacefully with the squirrels, the opossum was sound asleep. She was about their same size and fit right in with them. It was clear the squirrels had accepted her as one of their own, too.
Soon after, four out of the five squirrels were transferred out of RCTB, with one left behind who needed a little extra time and care. To Murrah’s amazement, the squirrel and the opossum found each other again.
Even though the squirrel was being kept in a closed-up fuzzy cubby, he wriggled his way out of it and into the opossum’s enclosure. This time, he was the one who needed comfort.
“[W]hat I say is, ‘If you’re an orphan, any other orphan will do,’” Murrah told The Dodo. “It’s like, ‘I’m instantly bonded to you because we’ve gone through something similar.’”
In addition to providing emotional comfort, when baby animals sleep together, they keep each other warm. When they’re that young, they can’t regulate their own body temperatures. Murrah wraps them up in warm blankets inside an incubator with a heating pad, of course, but snuggling makes everything even cozier.
“I think it’s really cute when they do that,” Murrah said.
As adorable as it is that the opossum and the squirrel have grown so attached to each other, it’s extremely important for rescued wild animals’ development to spend time with members of their own species. So Murrah transferred both the opossum and the squirrel to Little Bit Wildlife Rescue, where the opossum could be placed with other opossums and the squirrel could be placed with other squirrels.
But the two still couldn’t be kept apart. In the middle of their first night at Little Bit Wildlife Rescue, they crawled out of their pouches and found each other.
Their interspecies bond had stayed as strong as ever, even in a completely different location.
“[They] decided to cling to each other for comfort,” Murrah said.
As soon as they’re both strong enough, both the opossum and the squirrel will be released into the wild. While they’ll go their separate ways, it’s clear their friendship and the reassurance they’ve given each other has played a huge role in their growth.
To support Raptor Center of Tampa Bay, you can donate here. To support Little Bit Wildlife Rescue, you can donate here.
Frostbitten Puppies Dumped In Freezing Weather Huddled Under Porch To Survive
It was minus 25 degrees Fahrenheit 😰
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