Love at first sight: Queen Anne adopted from Tails Humane Society

DeKALB – Queen Anne, a 2-month-old mixed breed puppy that was taken from Tails Humane Society on Jan. 9 and returned Jan. 20 by the DeKalb Police Department, has a happy ending to her story – on Wednesday, she was adopted.

Mike Willock of Schaumburg visited Tails on Wednesday afternoon interested in adopting a dog.

The dog he was interested in was out for a veterinary visit, so he decided to look at the other adoptable puppies with his wife Marie and 11-year-old granddaughter Peyton.

“I saw her, took one look and she grabbed my heart,” Willock said of seeing Queen Anne for the first time. “She’s definitely a sweetie pie.”

The Willocks’ 9-year-old dog Shorty died in December from congestive heart failure. They didn’t know anything about Queen Anne’s past before visiting the shelter.

Wendy Corralejo, adoption counselor at Tails, fostered Queen Anne and her siblings and named them after characters from “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandre Dumas. Corralejo was at Tails when Queen Anne was adopted and helped with the paperwork.

“I am so happy for her, that she found a family that took one look at her and fell in love with her,” Corralejo said. “She’s a very smart, very sweet dog, and I’m overjoyed that she’s being adopted into a loving home.”

Michelle Groeper, Tails’ executive director, described Queen Anne’s adoption as “a great ending to the story.” The DeKalb Police Department have an active investigation into what happened.

“We cannot thank the DeKalb Police Department enough for their due diligence, and we’re grateful to the community for their support,” Groeper said. “We were always hopeful that she would be returned. We’re happy that she now has a family of her own.”

The Willocks’ 11-year-old granddaughter Peyton already nicknamed the puppy “Annie” before leaving the shelter.

“She’s adorable,” Peyton Willock said. “I can’t wait for her to warm up to me and always be there for me. I’m really excited to take her home.”