‘Adopting’ 27 Dogs Leads Woman to New Calling

Colleen Spalioni, above, reportedly adopted 27 dogs from a shelter two weeks ago, yet she says that’s not so. She went to replace her deceased dog Barney, above, but decided to help other dogs find homes. (Photos Courtesy of Colleen Spalione)

SPARKS, Nev. — Woman adopts 27 dogs.

The headlines have become viral on the Internet over the past two weeks, hitting as far as India and New Zealand.

But there is one minor aspect of the bizarre story that went untold, Colleen Spalione revealed to Pet Pulse.

"I never went to that shelter with the intention of adopting 27 dogs," Spalione, 43, said. "They keep on saying that I adopted them, but it wasn’t true. I only transported these dogs with the intention of adopting one for my family to replace Barney."

Barney was Spalione’s 2-year-old pointer that was hit by a car in November. The loss was devastating for Spalione, who cradled the dog when he died in her arms shortly after the accident.

"I was very upset," she said, tearing up in a phone interview. "I slept with him [Barney's body] overnight and would have kept him for another day, but there was an odor. I had him cremated and the hardest thing for me to do was to take him to the cremation center and walk away. I didn’t want to let him go."

Spaliones grief left her incapable of eating — after four days, she visited the doctor, concerned about her diabetes.

The doctor’s advice was simple: Get another dog, he told Spalione.

So the mother of five children, ranging in age from 13 to 23, set out to find the dog who could help replace Barney. The task proved more difficult than Spalione had anticipated.

She first located two different Barney look-alikes in nearby Reno, but the dogs didn’t get along with the family’s German Shepherd-mix, Tipper.

Spalione then set her sights higher and farther, turning to the Web site, DogsinDanger.com, which tracks shelter dogs that are on the verge of being euthanized.

She saw a dog that "looked just identical to Barney" in California, and drove the seven hours in a pick-up truck to visit the Delano Police Department Animal Shelter.

The dog was housed in a kennel with two other mutts; after speaking with shelter employees, Spalione decided to take all three.

The situation quickly spiraled out of control, Spalione says, as she spent more time in the shelter, meeting all of the dogs that were sitting on death row.

"At first it was, ‘What can it hurt to bring back three extra dogs?’ I was hearing about this situation and looking at these dogs’ faces and my heart just caved in," she said.

The three dogs were soon joined in the back of Spalione’s truck by an additional 15 small dogs.

"I didn’t really think about it at the time," she said. "I just didn’t think it through."

Spalione says she figured she could find friends, family and community members to take in the dogs, which included Chihuahuas, a poodle, Jack Russel terrier, Miniature Pincher, Australian Shepherd and a Rotweiller.

They ranged in age from 13-weeks to six years.

After four hours, Spalione had crated and boarded the 20 dogs into the back of her truck. But then, she encountered a woman dropping off seven 2-week-old puppies. Their mother had died and the woman didn’t have the time to tend to the sick pups, she toldSpalione.

The Delano shelter couldn’t help, either — the woman came from a neighboring county and would have to surrender them at her own shelter, which was overrun and would likely euthanize the feeble dogs.

Spalione once more stepped in, totaling her final count of rescued dogs to 27.

Even though she says she never intended to keep the dogs, the significance of Spalione’s actions didn’t fully affect her during the 7-hour drive back to Sparks, Nev.

"I was excited to know that I had saved the lives of all of these dogs," she said. "It didn’t hit me until the next day."

She initially kept the dogs in her backyard, which had large fenced-in enclosures, and in her heated garage.

She posted notices on the Internet and through various local media sources to find new homes for the dogs, some of which were not fixed, despite the shelter’s policy.

It is unclear why the shelter permitted Spalione to leave with so many dogs, or why not all of the animals were fixed.

Pet Pulse contacted the Delano Animal Shelter to inquire about its adoption policy, but representatives did not return Pet Pulse’s phone calls as of press time.

Spalione also faced a nerve-wracking call to her husband, who had been away during this ordeal and remained unaware of the recent additions to his home.

"I didn’t want someone to call him and say, ‘Oh, my God, did you see what your wife did?’ " Spalione said. "I called him, and told him. The first thing he said was, ‘What the hell does my house look like?’

"Then he said that I did a good thing, but to never do it again."

It’s a promise Spalione told The Associated Press, among other media outlets, she would keep. Nevertheless, she is no longer so sure she will hold true to her word.

"I will do this again," she said. "Maybe not to the same magnitude, but I will continue to save animals. I believe it is what I am here on the Earth to do."

As for her first rescue mission, Spalione has successfully found new homes for all but four of the dogs. Yet, five of the seven puppies she rescued died, as the veterinary attention they received in Nevada did not come soon enough.

Spalione’s determination to find "perfect homes" for the dogs has led her to travel as far as 200 miles to give a rescue a second chance.

Three dogs — a 1-year-old Rotweiller-mix, a 13-week-old Sharpei-mix and a 1-year-old Minature Pincher — currently remain at Spalione’s home.

The new additions get along well with the family’s dog, Tipper, as well as their other pets, including a hamster, 5-foot-long corn snake and four cats.

The three dogs remain available for adoption, however. Spalione says she is willing to travel to deliver the dogs, and would even front half of an air fare price to an East Coast location.

"I just want to find these dogs new, permanent, good homes," she said. "They can’t be surrendered again. They have been through too much."

Though Spalione says she is considering keeping the Miniature Pincher, which the family has named "Minnie," the young dog hasn’t been able to match the paw prints Barney impressed on Spalione’s heart.

"The Min Pin is wonderful, she really is," Spalione explained. "She is a great dog, but she is not the one."

Her hunt for a new dog will continue for as long as necessary, she says.

"The dog may be across the country," she said. "I will travel to find him and bring him home. If it came with behavioral issues, or was sick, I will still love it. No matter the cost."

For more information about Colleen Spalione’s rescued dogs, contact Spalione at

mmmmmm98226@yahoo.com.

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