Lead Me Home Rescue is a 501c3 non-profit animal rescue located in Corinth, MS , that strives to find loving homes for neglected and abandoned dogs. Amber Austin (Founder) began her journey in 2013 by fostering homeless dogs from her hometown and other areas in the South. She would also take in sick dogs and nurse them back to health. Then she would send them to Friends of Homeless Animals in Rhode Island where they were adopted. The result was the beginning of a new lifelong journey for Amber and her furry friends.
After helping foster and adopt out a large number of dogs over the years, Amber decided to branch out on her own and start her own rescue. (Lead Me Home Rescue in 2018). Her goal was to help save and adopt out as many stray and unwanted dogs as possible. Below Amber would like to share her journey of what inspired her to take a “leap of faith” and pursue her dream of starting her own rescue.
Submit Adoption Form
The story of LMHR all began with a dog named Luna (the face of our logo), who was surrendered by her owners on Valentines Day 2017 at a high kill shelter in Memphis, TN. Amber noticed her bright blue eyes and that she almost had no hair on her body. Having a soft spot for the “underdog”, she knew instantly that She had to help Luna.
Luna appeared to have mange, with almost no hair on her whole body. Amber and a number of medical professionals tried to get her skin cleared up, but nothing they did seemed to be working. Luna didn’t seem to mind that she didn’t have any hair. She was just happy to be in a loving home with her new mom. And she had fallen in love with kayaking with Amber.
A short time later , a large knot showed up on Lunas stomach and Amber immediately took her to see her vet. Dr. Gina Welton, Lead Me Homes veterinarian and close friend, removed the mass. After the surgery the test results came back inconclusive, with the belief that the knot was mast cell tumor. Amber contacted her friend Jeff Wall that flies for Pilots N Paws. They were able to organize a flight to get Luna in to see a specialist in Louisiana.
Dr. Kristen Kulinski , a well known vet in the South and also the vet on the tv show Pit Bulls and Parolees was willing to give her a helping hand. Dr. Kulinski performed a number of additional tests which resulted in inconclusive results. Luna remained a medical mystery to everyone that was trying to help her.
After everything Luna had gone through, Amber decided that she was going to take care of Luna and give her the best life possible. Amber and Luna became inseparable, spending lots of time on the water kayaking. Amber took Luna with her every time that she had a chance to go that summer. She wanted to make sure she lived a full life, no matter how long or short that life might be. “She had the strongest will to survive that I have ever seen” Amber said, “ her strength was inspiring to everyone that met her”
Nine months after taking Luna under her wing, Amber woke up one morning and noticed Luna wasn’t walking right. She knew something was clearly not right. Immediately she rushed Luna to the MSU vet school to have an MRI done to find out what was going on.
Sadly, Amber didn’t get the results she was hoping for. The cancer had spread rapidly to Lunas spine, lungs, and bones. Leaving Amber with the difficult decision of having to decide to put Luna to sleep. And to make things worse, this was her first time to have to do this with a dog.
The next day, before saying goodbye Amber took Luna out to the lake where she had first taken her when she brought her home from the shelter. “I let her watch the ducks swim and told her how much I loved her” said Amber. For breakfast that day Luna had steak and ice cream. After spending that last morning by the water together, Amber then had to say goodbye and let Luna go. It literally crushed her heart.
Amber has been wanting to start her own rescue for a while, but just hadn’t worked up the courage to do so. On the way to the vet that morning, Amber made a promise to Luna that she would save as many dogs as she could in her honor. With the loss of Luna, Amber found the courage to finally take that “leap of faith” and start her own rescue.
Shortly after, Amber began forming Lead Me Home Rescue. Luna gave her the push she needed to do exactly what Amber knew she was meant to be doing. Little did Luna know that her life was going to change the entire direction of Ambers. Lunas will to survive and courage inspired Amber in more ways than she would ever know. “ I think Luna would be proud knowing that with every dog Lead me home reacue saves, her legacy is being honored”.
Thank you all for taking the time to play a part in Lunas story. Your devotion and continued support are the reason we get to keep doing what we do.