Rescued puppies find a home

Bernard and Louie have found their forever homes.

After about two weeks in Gainesville and 31 applications for their adoptions, the 3- to 4-month-old Jindo-mix puppies, brought to Gainesville from a South Korean meat farm last week, will be going home to families.

Bernard met his new owners Thursday, and Louie will be picked up by his new family Sunday, said Margot DeConna, the director of development for the Alachua County Humane Society.

For Gainesville residents Richard and Carol Drummond, they weren’t expecting to get a call saying they’d get to take home Bernard. The Gainesville couple owned a Jindo-mix dog before, Murphy, who was euthanized in November because of his old age and sickness, Mrs. Drummond said.

“He was my soulmate,” she said. “I mean, my husband is, too, but he was just the best dog.”

Mrs. Drummond, 69, said she was devastated after Murphy died but wanted another Jindo pup because their house seemed too empty. But she didn’t know when to get another pup until she saw an article written about the puppies online.

She couldn’t help but fall in love with them and their story.

Mid-afternoon Thursday, she and her husband brought Bernard home. Running around as his tongue flopped to the side, Bernard looked awfully cute, she said.

“We got Bernard, but I’m going to name him Louie,” she said. “To me, he looks like a Louie.”

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Chrissy Sedgley, the director of operations at the Alachua County Humane Society, and Margot DeConna, the director of development, hold Bernard and Louie, 3- to 4-month-old jindo mixes inside the examination rooms at the shelter on Jan 16. DeConna said, originally, she thought the two dogs might need time to be socialized before being adopted, but after seeing them, DeConna said the dogs might get adopted sooner. “I think they’re going to be highly, highly adoptable,” she said.