Apollo

Run Free, Apollo

You were loved.
You will be missed.
You will always be part of our story.

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MPGR and Apollo

Apollo came to MPGR in April of 2024, and he immediately became our mascot. He went to dozens of events, hoping to be adopted but never had any interest. We got so attached to him, but knew he needed his forever home.
After 7 months of waiting, we were contacted by the Porco’s, they were interested in meeting Apollo, we were elated.
The Porco’s drove two hours from Madison, Wisconsin to meet our big boy. Immediately, Mr. Porco fell in love, you could see it in his eyes. And while it may have taken a bit more to convince Mrs. Porco, they adopted Apollo and the MPGR staff started crying.

These were not tears of sadness, they were tears of happiness. Finally a family saw what we saw, a big, loveable boy, who just wanted to love and be loved.

Thank’s to updates from Mrs, Porco, we were able to see how Apollo was doing. Mrs. Porco told us he was her Soul dog, and they could not imagine their life without him.

Unfortunately, in January 2026 Apollo became sick. While in the emergency vet, it was discovered that Apollo had stage 3 renal disease. This sweet boy held on as long as he could, but the Porco’s made the heartbreaking decision for him to cross the rainbow bridge.

While his loss wrecked us, we know he is not in pain and in a better place.

As a way to honor him, we share his story, and he will continue to be MPGR’s mascot.

The Porco Family and Apollo

November 22, 2024

Apollo is settling in and we have been loving every minute. He is a gentle giant, and is so caring to all our kiddos – he knows just when they need a snuggle. He is goofy, and hilarious with toys. He is getting along with our older pittie and our cat. After we lost our dog of 13 years, we didn’t think we would get another that was so sweet and wonderful. Then we met Apollo and knew that it was meant to be. So glad to have this guy in the family.

November 4, 2025

A year and a day ago, Bryan took us to meet this huge goofy dog he was very excited about. I was not sure how it would go and was withholding enthusiasm. Then I met Apollo, and I knew that he was special and he was meant to be in our family. Happy Gotcha Day Apollo! This year has been just awesome – watching you and our littlest develop such a special relationship and having your goofy, caring and wonderful dog self has made our family so much more. We feel so lucky to have found this guy, big thanks to Jen, Hannah, Mike and all those involved at Many Paws for all their support and care for the dogs and the families they work with.

January 20, 2026

Yesterday we said goodbye to our amazing Apollo.
Though we have had many wonderful dogs over the years, Apollo was different.
Apollo was a soul dog for me- the kind of dog that you connect with immediately as if you’ve always known one another, finding a place in your heart that you never even knew existed. He was the kind of dog that knows your footsteps from the driveway, understands without explanation, and knows just when to gently lean on you when the world grows teeth.
He came into our lives as a rescue, from Many Paws Global Rescue (MPGR). From the moment we met him, we knew that he was meant to be in our family. He formed a special connection with our youngest, following her everywhere.
He had a way of connecting with each of us in his own profound way. Beyond our family, he touched so many others too. He just had that gift.
He was both enormous and quiet. He carried himself with a quiet dignity, watchful and knowing, but he was gloriously goofy too. That big, beautiful contradiction—noble and silly in the same breath. The way he’d play, the expressions he’d make, those moments of pure, unfiltered joy that reminded us not to take life too seriously.
He was exactly the dog we needed, even before we knew we needed him.
We knew adopting him (being an older and larger dog) that we may not have as much time with him as if he was younger. It was so worth it and we would do it all again. Of course we will always wish for more time, and we thought we would have more time than we did. It was shocking how quickly his kidney disease progressed at the end.
Even in the short time we did get with him, he taught us so much. If we hadn’t been open to adopting an older dog we wouldn’t have had the amazing opportunity to know him and love him. He has had a huge impact on our family over the past 14 months. Without words or conditions, he showed us every day what it means to love and be family. We are so grateful to have been able to know and love him, for any time. I encourage everyone to adopt, and consider those dogs who so often get overlooked.
We miss you so much sweet Apollo. The space you filled in our home, in our hearts, can never be filled by another.
Bravo ragazzo. You were loved beyond measure by so many. You always will be.
We want to send our love and deep thanks to everyone at MPGR, especially Jen, they are just as much Apollo’s family as we have been. Without them we never would have found Apollo. Thank you for allowing us to give him a forever home and for your love and support every step of the way.

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