2022 TLC Rescue Calendar Cover Story

A Road Trip Inspired by Gloria’s Travels

Road Trip Destination: Pejey’s Auto Body & Towing to pick up the RV then off to tour Chester County & more!

 So here’s the story behind the inspiration of the TLC local road trip Calendar. Gloria, the adventurous, crazy cattle dog!

Gloria was rescued from a high kill shelter in South Carolina along with her puppies. This sweet girl was brought into the shelter as a stray with her adorable little ones. She had only recently given birth before she made her freedom ride to PA. Her puppies were quickly adopted and Gloria was schedule for her spay surgery and to begin Heartworm treatment.

On December 17th, 2019 Gloria was spooked on a walk in a local park in Malvern and slipped her collar. For 2 whole weeks, we would have zero sightings of Gloria.  To our surprise, our first sighting of her was not in Malvern, but in Newtown Square. Volunteers spent hours searching and traps were set but to no avail…

After feeling quite lost and defeated with no sign of Gloria, Team TLC decided to take another chance at rejuvenating the search efforts by resharing her flyer. After sharing and posting her flyer over and over again, Gloria was sighted in Glenn Mills, Concordville, West Chester and Chadds Ford areas. More flyers were distributed in mailboxes and on street poles, multiple traps had been set and re-set, and experienced volunteers continued to track Gloria’s every known move.

So why couldn’t we catch this girl? Gloria is SMART - really, really street smart. She moved from town to town and rarely stayed in the same spot for more than a day or two. Because Gloria never looked to be a stray dog, people who saw her would often comment on how well fed she looked! Gloria had several food and water sources from the local farms and restaurants in the area and was always able to sustain a healthy weight. The theory was that Gloria was most likely conditioned to living on the streets from when she was a stray down south. Every time a human attempted to approach, call out to or physically contain Gloria, she would retreat back into ‘flight mode’ and move to another town.

Months would go by and we would have no sightings of Gloria. There were often times we thought the worst but hoped for the best and prayed that some good samaritan took the sweet girl in and she was living her best life. Then out of nowhere, we would get an unexpected sighting and the chase would be back on. 

For more than one year - 381 days to be exact - this street smart, resourceful, and very mobile girl eluded capture, traveling through Malvern, Glenn Mills, Chadds Ford, West Chester, Kennett Square, and even to the border of Delaware State.

On the evening of December 31st, 2020 (New Year’s Eve) a call came in to TLC. A dog matching Gloria’s description was hunkered down under someone’s back porch while they were cooking dinner. A small team and local neighbors jumped into action and gathered together in the freezing cold to bring Gloria out from under that deck. Through determination, patience and lots of cold, muddy clothes, Gloria was pulled to safety and transported to a warm foster home. It was only minutes after midnight that Gloria was finally safe. A Happy New Year many of us will never forget!

With her new foster family, Glora settled in faster than anyone would have thought. Her foster mom had even said, “I never expected a dog who was on the run for a year to be better behaved than my own dogs!”

Gloria quickly settled into residential life, snuggling on the couch and giving hugs. She learned that being on a leash is a good thing and enjoys going walking with her pack. According to her humans, housetraining came quickly. She’s become a bit of a diva when it comes to going out to potty in the rain though; preferring to stay warm and dry. 

Gloria was checked out by a vet only a few days after coming home. The vet deemed her to be overall healthy and in good condition despite her adventure. She was treated for a few tick-borne diseases. To everyone’s surprise and great relief, Gloria actually tested Heartworm Negative! 

The rest of us saw the writing on the wall concerning her so-called “temporary” situation, but it took her fosters a little longer to realize it. Gloria was already home and has stayed in the extended TLC Family. We wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.