Roxi the abandoned mastiff gets new forever home with Aquebogue couple

Nearly four weeks after Roxi, a 4-year-old English mastiff, was abandoned on the Southern State Parkway, an Aquebogue couple has embraced the dog, giving her a new permanent home.

On Monday, John Reeve, 70, and his wife, Sandy Reeve, 68, adopted Roxi. The Reeves, owners of the J & S Reeve Cottages, a vacation rental agency, welcomed the Mastiff to their summer cottages, which includes 3 acres of pet-friendly land.

Hearing that Roxi had been tied to a pole on the parkway on July 1, John Reeve said they jumped at the opportunity to adopt the dog. 

"We were both watching TV after dinner . . . we listened to the whole story, and immediately we both looked at each other and said we got to call on this," he said.

Sandy Reeve said she called the New York State troopers, who had rescued the dog, and then the animal shelter where she was being housed. They told her that 80 other people had expressed interest in Roxi and applications were closed. 

The Reeves, have had dogs all their lives, including Mastiffs. Most recently, their mastiff puppy, Hannah, died of kidney disease, two years ago. "We have not been able to get another dog since; it hurt us very badly to have a 13-month-old puppy die," Sandy Reeve said. "When we saw Roxi on TV it was a no-brainer that we would love to have this dog." 

Telling their story to the animal shelter, they were given a chance to apply. The Reeves were one of five applicants chosen for a final round of in-person interviews. 

Meeting Roxi, the two were told by the animal shelter that she is "skittish" around men. Yet, when John Reeve took her for a walk at the shelter, she seemed comfortable with him. On July 9, a few days later, they were told they were selected to adopt the dog.

"It brought tears to our eyes that we were chosen," said Sandy Reeve. "It was almost as if we were getting our dog back who passed away."

While picking up Roxi on Monday, they were unsure how they would convince the more-than 100 pound dog to enter their car, especially after she recently underwent spay surgery. 

"We made sure we had a big enough vehicle for her, and when we got there we said, 'Well, we're going to need help to lift her in," Sandy Reeve said. "And she just jumped right into there, sat down, and there's a picture of my husband and her sitting right there. It's as though she's like, OK, fine, you're finally here to pick me up."