November 15, 2008

After receiving hundreds of requests, Great Dane breeder Dianne Gilbert-Sutter, left, offered 13-year-old Kayla Guerrero a new puppy friend. Guerrero suffers from a malformed heart, already enduring 29 surgeries. (Photo Courtesy of Richard Shutter)

CHICAGO -- Her Great Dane puppies retail for $1,000, but the money only left Dianne Gilbert-Shutter's wallet content, not her heart.

"We had a lot of good luck and fortune with breeding and selling puppies and I decided, I told my husband I thought we should do something nice for someone else," Gilbert-Shutter said.

The random act of charity -- donating a pedigree puppy to a sick child in need of a constant companion -- has now changed Gilbert-Shutter's life and made her re-evaluate her "purpose," she says.

Gilbert-Shutter contacted The Chicago Sun-Times, asking the daily paper to pen an article detailing her donation plan. The story ran last week -- by the end of the day, Gilbert-Shutter says, she had received "so many" phone calls.

Her e-mail inbox was also filled with hundreds of pleas from people -- some with sick children, some without -- desperate to call the normally expensive puppy their own.

The first e-mail Gilbert-Shutter opened belonged to Kayla Guerrero, a 13-year-old who has reoccurring heart problems stemming from her lack of a pulmonary valve.

"My heart may not be perfect, but I know that it has a ton of love to give to a puppy," Guerrero wrote to Gilbert-Shutter.

Even though it was nighttime, and potentially past the teenager's bedtime, Gilbert-Shutter says she couldn't resist picking up the phone.

"I said, 'I want to tell you something. I received hundreds of e-mails and calls but there is no one I wanted to have the puppy more than you,' " Gilbert-Shutter said, recalling her conversation with Guerrero.

Guerrero and her family went to Gilbert-Shutter's house on Sunday to select the dog. A 9-week-old black female stole Guerrero's heart.

Guerrero, who has had 29 heart surgeries, named the puppy Peyton.

While the teen is able to walk, she is prohibited from playing sports and will likely have more surgeries, her mother told The Chicago Sun-Times.

This leaves Guererro stuck on the sidelines when she goes to watch her older brother and sister compete in games.

If she had a puppy, Guerrero wrote to Gilbert-Shutter, she would have someone to keep her company in the stands.

The visit was a moving one for both Guerrero and Gilbert-Shutter, who plan to stay in touch.

"She said she couldn't thank me enough and I said, 'I can't thank you enough, you have changed my life,' " Gilbert-Shutter said.

Gilbert-Shutter says that anyone who saw Guerrero's face and watched her interact with Peyton would understand her emotional response and its withstanding impact on her life.

"I just looked at her and I knew what I wanted to do. It's just wonderful and feels so satisfying to me."

Peyton was one of nine puppies in the Gilbert-Shutters' dogs' second litter of the year. Next time 2-year-old Nicky gives birth, Gilbert-Shutter says, she will donate at least one puppy to a sick child who will really appreciate all the pup has to offer.

Gilbert-Shutter also mentioned her desire to start up a nonprofit and incorporate other breeders into her potentially expanding program.

She says she has already received a call from a private breeder in Memphis, Tenn., who expressed plans to follow her lead in donating puppies.

The prospect of losing out on money isn't an issue for Gilbert-Shutter, who works full time at a candy store.

"We are not wealthy people," Gilbert-Shutter said. "My husband said, 'We are trying to build this as a business,' and I am saying, 'Well, maybe we will not do that this year or the next.' It doesn't matter. We have helped somebody's life."

"We have done something wonderful and that is what is important."

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The Chicago Sun-Times contributed to this article.