Maggie's story is actually pretty unique because she was half and half regarding a puppy mill versus a homeless shelter. My boyfriend and I were looking for a puppy, and we had visited a few animal shelters and were deciding between a handful of possible adoptions. We were really wanting a border collie, whether it be a mix or full-blood, when we found a mutual friend's Facebook post that was promoting a puppy that needed to be adopted through a breeder because nobody wanted to buy her. The breeder was giving three days for someone to adopt her, or they were planning to take her to an animal shelter which was not happening when Evan and I finished reading the post. We were three and a half hours away from the breeder, so we jumped in the car and starting driving at eleven o'clock that night. We were trying to figure out what we were going to name her the entire way, and we had it narrowed down to Maggie or Piper; we decided that we would see her personality before making our final decision. When we arrived around two in the morning, the owner left her in a cardboard box on the front porch, and our hearts felt so bad for her more than they already did. There is no telling how long she was sitting in that box, alone and scared. We picked her small, fluffy body up and took her home with us. Her small body was covered in fleas to the point that she had a few open wounds, and she was so scared of us to the point that she refused to walk the full day we had her. Today, she is the happiest and most spoiled dog in town! Even though we did not have any adoption papers, I believe that we still saved Maggie's life. It just makes me sick to my stomach to think that there are dogs that experience conditions like Maggie did all of their lives with no way to defend themselves. Therefore, please think about the benefits of adopting over shopping next time you are looking to add a furry friend to your family!