Jennifer wasn’t expecting a Christmas miracle when she flipped open her Herald Sun in December last year. However, as soon she spotted a little Chihuahua named Gracie in the annual ’12 Strays of Christmas’ feature — wearing a lopsided santa hat and a sweetly embarrassed expression — it was a hallelujah moment.

“As soon as I saw her picture, I wanted to adopt her,” Jennifer reflected. “I tried calling straight away… and was told I was the first to ask, so my name was taken and I immediately drove to North Melbourne to see Gracie.”

Jennifer remembers walking up to Gracie’s pen and finding a tiny, adorable little figure wagging her tail excitedly, overcome with joy at being chosen. Taking her out onto the grass for a meet and greet, Gracie’s happy yips and barks filled the air and Jennifer wondered briefly whether she was making the right decision.

“It worried me because I didn’t really want a yappy dog,” she admitted. “However I knew I loved her so I decided to adopt her anyway.”

As it turns out, Jennifer had made the right decision, describing her beloved Gracie as “perfect”.

“She obviously had been well trained by her previous owner,” she said. “The only time she does yelp a bit is when I come home after being out. I think she is so happy that I have come back.

“I now realise that that is what she was doing on the day I adopted her… saying, ‘I am so happy you have come to get me’.”

Seven-years-old, not desexed and with no microchip, little Gracie was given a second chance at a happy life the day she was brought into The Lost Dogs’ Home. Jennifer said it was never an option to buy a dog from a pet shop and that she found her experience adopting from the Home “very rewarding”.

“I feel that there is not enough kindness in this world and I wanted to help an animal that needed a home,” she said. “As I hadn’t owned a dog for many years, I was slightly nervous about adopting a stray dog. However, the staff and volunteers at The Lost Dog’s Home were so helpful and gave me lots of advice and encouragement.”

Jennifer said Gracie has become a shining light in her life and brightens up every day.

“She has brought me abundant love and joy and now I can’t imagine my life without her in it,” she wrote in a recent email. “Thank you for the great service you provide for our lost and vulnerable animals.”

It is our sincerest pleasure.