From laboratory to loving home: Sloane's story

In July 2022, news broke that 4,000 Beagles needed to be adopted from Envigo, a Virginia breeding facility that provided pharmaceutical companies with animals to test on. The dogs had suffered horrific neglect and abuse at the hands of the facility, which was found to have violated federal law on numerous occasions and was subsequently shut down. This resulted in one of the largest dog rescue efforts in US history, and Julie, a volunteer at the Oregon Humane Society (OHS), knew she wanted to be a part of it. 

Beagles have a special place in Julie’s heart, and at the time, she was grieving the loss of her “soul dog”, a Beagle mix named Chloe. Eager to find out what she could to do help, Julie spoke to staff at OHS to see whether they would be getting any of the Beagles. It turned out they would be taking 80 of them. When the dogs arrived in late August, Julie spent the day at the kennels trying to get her Beagle fix and heal her broken heart. That’s when she first met Sloane.

“I sat down with Sloane (named Spaghetti at the time), and her silly antics reminded me so much of Chloe as a puppy. When I went home, I couldn’t stop thinking of her. We’d just sold our house and were about to move, my partner and I both had a bunch of work travel lined up and we were about to take a 3-week trip to Portugal - it was the absolute worst timing, but on August 24, 2022, we adopted her and renamed her Sloane!”

It didn’t take long for Julie to fall head over heels for her newfound friend, but for Sloane, her new life would take some getting used to! 

“In her kennel, bolstered with confidence from her furry friends, Sloane was a sweet 6-month-old puppy who couldn’t stay upright because she required non-stop belly rubs. This still remains true! However, once I brought her home, she was fearful of loud noises, “surprise” sounds, and new experiences - walking outside, being in a car, and her new home was all terrifying for her.”

As they got into the swing of things, Sloane began to come out of her shell.

“We worked diligently to build up her confidence by gradually increasing her exposure to new situations and loud noises. We used positive reinforcement and rewards to encourage her and she aced everything like a pro! That’s all in her past now and she’s a pretty confident little lady now. She absolutely loves long walks, road trips, and meeting every single person (and dog) she sees!

Sloane loves:

• Dance parties! She’s a big fan of Blackpink!
• It sounds weird but this girl LOVES trust falls! She wants to be picked up and then immediately starts pushing off so that you can do a giant sweeping trust fall holding her on her back. She has no fear!
• Long walks where she can spend 10 minutes sniffing one blade of grass…
• Parkour off the living room furniture while playing with her 11-year-old Pitbull brother, Moby.
• Did we mention Moby? Sloane loves her brother, and the feeling is mutual.
• Sleeping in late, snuggled deep under the covers or lying flat out on her back.
• Bringing home “treasures” (aka sticks, leaves, etc.) to shred into millions of pieces on the couch or a bed. 

Sloane doesn’t love:

• Having her treasures removed, cleaned up, and thrown away - rude?!
• Loud motorcycle or car engine “gunning” sounds, but who does?”

Once Sloane was settled in, Julie decided to try to make contact with some of her furry family members (Sloane’s, not Julie’s). With the dedicated help of a woman working with the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), a database of families with rescue Beagles from Envigo was created. “Unfortunately,” Julie says, “Sloane’s two known siblings live on the East Coast so a reunion might be tricky, but never impossible!” 

But Sloane’s story doesn’t end there, and after becoming the cover model of Pet Companion magazine, this pup deserves everything she’s getting. “I guess I’m her momager?” Julie laughs.

“Sloane and I share my Instagram account and sometimes Moby makes some appearances, too. If you want to see some adorable Sloane pics and an occasional dance party video, give us a follow @julie_honse.” 

So what’s next? As Julie and her furry family make the transition from Palm Springs to Portugal, she tells us a little bit about how they’re going to make it work. 

“When we were in “negotiations" about adopting Sloane, my partner was concerned that we would not have anyone to pet sit for us in our transitional Palm Springs living situation, and then in the home we purchased in Portugal, where we will ultimately live. I had heard about TrustedHousesitters from a friend of ours, who used the site to pet sit full-time while she was trying to buy a house. So I immediately looked the website up to confirm this would be an option for us…and TrustedHousesitters became one of my bargaining chips!”

While all of the Envigo Beagles have since been adopted with the help of charities like the Oregon Humane Society and our pawt-ners at Helen Woodward Animal Center, there are many dogs who still need homes. Julie points us towards Beagle Freedom Project, a great group that focuses its efforts on getting testing labs to agree to surrender their subjects once testing is over rather than euthanize them.