After KHTS Adoptable Pet of the Week Edie found herself at risk of heading back to the shelter earlier this month, KHTS Features Director Melissa Lampert and her family made the decision to launch their own animal rescue and take her in.

Edie’s former foster mom, Santa Clarita resident Vicci Zimmerman, did everything she could to rehome the five-year-old lab/shepherd mix over the last month, and reached out to KHTS recently after she had exhausted all her options.

Edie with M.A.P.S. Co-Founder / KHTS Features Director Melissa Lampert.

“When I first met Edie to film her Pet of the Week video, I knew she was such a special dog,” Lampert said. “Even after everything she’s been through, she’s so loving and trusting. I was committed to helping Vicci find the forever home Edie deserves, so when I learned she might end up back at the shelter, I knew I had to do something.”

Related: KHTS Adoptable Pet Of The Week: Edie

Together with her parents, Randi and Joe, sister, Jennifer, and fiance, Halion Abramovitch, the family came together to fulfill Lampert’s lifelong dream of starting her own rescue, Madeline’s Angels Pet Sanctuary (M.A.P.S.), named after one of Lampert’s rescued cats, Madeline.

“We are so grateful to Vicci and the Zimmerman family for everything they’ve done for Edie, and now we’re incredibly excited to have her as our first official rescue dog,” Lampert said. “We still have some work to do before Edie will be ready for her forever family, but she is improving every single day.”

Because Edie had to stay separated from Zimmerman’s cats during her time at their house, and had spent the first five years of her life severely neglected in her former owner’s backyard, no one truly knew what to expect when Edie first came to her new foster home in Saugus.

Edie in her favorite spot at her new foster home.

It was quickly discovered that she was not potty trained, didn’t know how to walk on a leash and had likely never been in a home environment before. But in just days, she was already showing vast improvement.

Related: KHTS Adoptable Pet Of The Week Edie Urgently In Need Of New Home

“Edie has adjusted so fast to her foster home,” Lampert said. “In a little over a week, she’s now fully potty trained, is learning how to ‘heel’ on walks and absolutely adores cuddling up on the couch.”

With continued love, attention and training, Lampert and her family are confident Edie will be ready for her forever home very soon.

“It just goes to show that rescue pets — even ones who were abused or neglected their entire lives — are not ‘broken,’” Lampert said. “They just need someone to give them a chance, and I’m so glad that, first Vicci, and now Madeline’s Angels Pet Sanctuary, have been able to give Edie that chance.”

To read Edie’s full story, click here. For more information, email [email protected] or click here.

About Madeline’s Angels Pet Sanctuary (M.A.P.S.)

Madelines Angels Pet Sanctuary (M.A.P.S.) is a foster-based animal rescue in Santa Clarita dedicated to finding forever homes for pets in need. The organization was founded in 2016 by Melissa Lampert, a lifelong animal lover with over 10 years of experience in the animal care and rescue world, and her family. Though not an official 501(c)3 nonprofit at this time, the Lampert family is excited to start the process of becoming one, and any donations made will go directly toward the care of the animals. The founders of Madeline’s Angels Pet Sanctuary firmly believe: “Saving one animal won’t change the world, but for that one animal, the world will be forever changed.”