BY KATE HOFSTETTER
M
ary Boyer saves abandoned animals… and
occasionally, mistreated houses. Her three dogs are
“her life”, “her children”, “her joy”.
“All my children have paws,” she likes to say.
Jackson, the oldest and best behaved of the three, was found
in a garbage dumpster when he was just a puppy. He was in
that dumpster with his dead mother and four siblings; three
of which survived.
Socks, a young adult today, had suffered from such a bad case
of mange (a disease of the skin) that all her hair had fallen out,
making it virtually impossible to find an adoptive home. Mary
to the rescue. Yogi, also a young adult, had been abused by his
previous owner, including some evidence of burns. They look a
lot alike, but the three dogs are not related. Perhaps not even
the same breed, as they are all mutts...beloved mutts.
If the earlier neglect and abuse affected the dogs emotionally,
it isn’t evident today. Under Mary’s watchful eye and loving
care, all three have recovered completely. Their black coats are
thick and shiny and their teeth gleam white and sound. No
tartar or gum disease here. “I make them brush every day,”
Mary jokes. All three dogs spend most of their time smiling
and vying for Mary’s attention.
Mary’s husband and sidekick, John, loves the dogs, too,
but on this particular day, John was taking care of business
that did not involve magazine articles or exuberant pets so,
unfortunately, he wasn’t available for pictures.
The dogs are a great success story full of human interest;
however, it was a house that Mary and John saved that piqued
my curiosity. They call it the “Big House”. Most locals call it
Dora’s Mansion or Dora’s Folly. If you’ve never heard of it you
probably aren’t from around here. Certainly, if you’ve ever
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