On a November morning in 2016, Emily Taphouse’s life was turned upside down. Her husband, Korey was a victim of a fatal hit and run.

The couple had two small children, Hazel and June, ages 4 and 2 at the time. Emily was devastated over the loss of her husband. Not only did Emily have to deal with her own grief, but she also had to tell her two little girls they would never see their dad again.

Hazel, the older of the two little girls, took it the hardest.

“Telling her that her dad died, and also that she wasn’t able to see him, was almost worse than the accident itself,”

Emily told The Dodo, during an interview.

Emily was having a very difficult time dealing with Korey’s death. In order to get a fresh start, Emily sold their family home and moved closer to Grand Rapids Michigan.

Emily and her two children were struggling to get through this most difficult time in their lives, as Emily was an animal lover, she decided to adopt a bulldog puppy. They named her Fern and she was an adorable brown and white puppy.

Adding some happiness to the girls’ lives was a very important factor in Emily’s healing process. Hazel and June found comfort snuggling with their new puppy.

“It’s like I could feel a patch be placed on my heart,”

Emily explained.

Fern loved her playdates with other puppies, but became sad afterward, Emily noticed. Emily felt that Fern was lonely so she began her search for another bulldog. Finding a bulldog-like Fern was not an easy task.

“It seemed that every dog we were finding in the shelters and adoption groups was either not good with small kids, or kitties, or was too old to keep up with our 1-year-old stinker,” Taphouse explained.

When Emily almost gave up on finding the perfect dog, a friend had tagged her in a post on Facebook. The post was about a large Foster bulldog named Juno that was rescued from an abusive owner. Emily’s friend tagged her thinking that Emily could find Juno a forever home as she was always trying to find homes for animals that needed them. Emily was ecstatic and replied to her friend, “Yeah, ME!!!”.

When Emily brought Juno home to meet the girls, they sat on the floor with Juno and the 74-pound Juno laid her head on her 30-pound 4-year-old daughter and it was love at first sight.

Emily wasn’t quite sure what Juno’s disposition would be like since she was abused and neglected. She wasn’t sure if Juno was going to be frightened, timid, or aggressive. Emily explained that Juno is the most gentle baby, always sitting or laying near her family members, with her cheek next to their cheek or keeping a paw on them.

“She had previously been hit when she tried to get on the furniture,” Taphouse said. “I got her home, and we talked her into going on the couch. She looked like she had found a piece of heaven.”

Emily and the girls made sure Juno knew she was loved. Juno had a huge impact on Emily’s youngest daughter, they became inseparable and did everything together.

Finding Fern and Juno has brought a lot of joy and comfort to the whole family. Almost 2 years after Korey’s death, Emily began to heal. Emily stated that having the two dogs have done more for her healing process than any medications or professional therapy has done for her.

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