Husky pair makes it home for the holidays

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Home for the holidays has taken on a whole new meaning for an Albuquerque family and their two newly-adopted husky dogs.

The road to their perfect holiday started two years ago, when a pair of husky dogs, Maxximus and Marilyn, were abandoned at a westside Albuquerque dog park.

“Tethered, chained up to the fence and it was during a really bad thunderstorm. So really severe weather wind, rain, thunder, lightning, the whole thing. They were terrified,” explained Angela Stell, the founder and director of NMDOG. Stell made every effort to get the dogs back to their owner, but never got a response, and got to work on finding them the perfect home.

“It’s hard enough to find one dog a really great home it’s twice as hard to find two dogs the same great home,” said Stell.

After almost two years of social media updates and posts, one meet and greet changed their lives.

“We were just scrolling through NMDOG looking at the dogs looking at donations and we saw Max and Marilyn’s just information and that they were a bonded pair and we fell in love with their story,” said Elya Hawkins, their new adopted mom.

The meet and greet turned into a trial adoption period, that turned into an eight-paw addition to their family, just in time for the holidays. 

“They really make things perfect. A little crazy but perfect,” said Hawkins. “It was like they were meant to be. Like they were never going to leave here.”

The family endured a few rough years themselves, and couldn’t think of a better way to end 2022. 

“We made it through everything the last few years this is the best gift we could’ve ever gotten,” said Hawkins. “They need us just as much as we need them.”

“It means everything,” said Angela Stell. “It’s not just a home, we know that it’s the right home because we work so hard to make sure our placements are just right for everybody.”

NMDOG currently has another pair of husky dogs up for adoption, named Go Go and James Bond.

If you’re interested, visit their website here. The organization will waive the pair’s adoption fee.