Chloe Carroll adoption day at shelter spreads the love

David Kronke, The Tribune-Star, Terre Haute, Ind.
·2 min read

May 23—"A good dog is always great," said Jeremy Combs as he was preparing to adopt a sweet pit bull named Pixel at the Terre Haute Humane Society on Saturday.

Saturday was Chloe Carroll Memorial Adoption Day at the Humane Society, named in honor of an animal-loving teenage girl who was shot to death in July by what police believe was a 15-year-old gunman.

Carroll's family established the Chloe Carroll Memorial Fund at the shelter in January, and donors have been contributing to the fund since then.

Offering $25 off the adoption fee as well as a table filled with mini cupcakes and cookies made it a busy day at the shelter, said Madeleine Brown, adoption counselor at the Humane Society.

"We've had a lot of meet-and-greets," she said. "Any time we do events like this, people come in and I've seen a lot of people donate. I've had at least five people donate today. The community is really coming together for it."

Brown said the memorial fund goes to treating special-needs animals.

"We've used it most for heartworm treatment," she said. "So if someone adopts an animal that has heartworm, we always provide the treatment for them. It's been immensely helpful for people who adopt animals with health problems so that they can afford it."

Money also recently went to an emergency cat tail amputation.

Douglas Gibson, who'd been volunteering at the shelter for a month, took advantage of Chloe Carroll Memorial Adoption Day.

"I am adopting one I fell in love with while working here," he said. "Buddy Love is going home with me to his forever home tonight. He's so sweet and beautiful, he's such a sweetheart. He cuddles and plays ball."

As he spoke he was sitting on the floor enjoying the company of Pixel, the dog who would soon go home with Combs.

"As long as you show 'em love and attention, like this big guy, he'll just let you love him all day," Gibson said.

As his girlfriend Lacey Lovelady filled out the paperwork for Pixel, Combs said, "I grew up with dogs. I adopted a dog from here 10 or 12 years ago. He was a pit-retriever mix and one of the best dogs I ever had."

He and Lovelady had been considering getting a new dog for a couple of months.

"She had two dogs that had to be put down within a couple of months of each other," Combs said. "She told me wasn't going to get another dog. And then, here we are."

David Kronke can be reached at 812-231-4232 or at david.kronke@tribstar.com.