A Dog Named Freya

Our story doesn't begin with Freya but it is because of her, we had the motivation and courage to open Rivendell.

As every good story of 2020 is want to do, Freya's story begins with COVID-19. At the beginning of the pandemic, Paul and I were struggling in all the ways that were common to couples. Our professional lives turned upside down, working from home, no ability to see friends and family. We were stuck in feelings of helplessness and hopelessnes, and disagreeing on just about everything. Everything changed for us when one day, a good friend alerted us to a local rescue in immediate need of homes for 10 Great Pyrenees puppies. The puppies, and their mom, were rescued from a pretty horrible hoarding situation. Freya's mom was so malnourished that she could not feed her hungry litter and needed help with their care.

Freya was put into foster care at 6-weeks and we brought her home at 8-weeks. We had no idea how to care for a Great Pyrenees but felt compelled to help and learned quickly, mostly through our mistakes. We went to extremes to be 100% present with her special needs which included anxiety-driven hoarding of all things she could get her mouth on.

She grew.

We grew.

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At 150-pounds, most people are intimated of Freya and we don't blame them. At about ten months, during the late hours each night when most people are wanting to sleep, Freya became a heavy barker. We knew it was only a matter of time before she/we were reported.

Paul and I, for years, had discussed a future animal sanctuary and our new tenuous position of pending eviction was the moment, though not ready, we decided to pursue this dream.