ATLANTA — Addiction can rip families apart and leave those on the outside feeling helpless.
A Georgia mom told 11Alive she didn't know what to do as her son sank deeper and deeper in to addiction. When Darlene Knight realized she couldn't save him after years of fighting, she told our Kaitlyn Ross she didn't want to feel helpless and still wanted to save something.
So, she starting saving homeless animals in honor of her son, and of all people who are fighting addiction. Take Dallas, for example.
One look, and you can tell he is loved. He is part of a family now, and he is home.
But he almost didn't make it.
"Dallas was turned in without a name," Knight said. "His owners didn't even care enough to give his name. We don't even know if he had one."
When Dallas was surrendered at the Polk County Animal Shelter, he was scheduled to be put down. Nobody wanted him.
"At 10 p.m. the night he would be euthanized, someone said, 'I want him.' That's exactly how it happened," Knight explained. "He was in his eleventh hour, and I couldn't stop it."
She said when she looked at Dallas, she thought of her son: a heroine addict, in prison, in his eleventh hour. No one can save him.
"Many people believe they are throw aways, just like our addicts," she said. "So, there's always hope, and I gave hope to a dog named Dallas."
Photos: Mom saves homeless dogs in honor of those lost to addiction
Saving Dallas gave her an idea.
"We began losing friends his age to addiction, and I thought, if I can't save this child, I can save another life by paying an adoption fee for a shelter dog," she said.
So, she paid the adoption and vetting fees for a dog in honor of her son's friend who just lost his life to addiction.
She named him Dallas.
Knight said seeing Dallas have a second shot at life has given her new hope for the future.
"It's hard to have hope," she admitted. "You're filled with hope. You're let down. You're filled with hope again. You're lied to. It's a vicious circle, and no matter where you live, it's the same hell, different house."
She's trying to break that cycle, and that stigma, through homeless pets.
"I understand it well, from seven years of experience," she said. "A lot of people think he's worthless. A lot of people think shelter dogs are worthless because their owners didn't want them. So, I found a connection, and I'm going to keep promoting them."
She said it's opened the door for other people who are struggling to talk to her and understand they're not alone in the fight.
"It's an incredible way to talk about addiction," she said. "I'm not ashamed of it. It's a war we all need education to face. By talking to each other. To know that I made a difference in one dog's life - that's all it takes."
Knight does not plan on starting a formal foundation or a charity, but she said anyone can get involved.
She saved Dallas with the help of Shannon Hicks at the Polk County Animal Shelter and his new mom, Tabitha. Knight urged anyone who's thinking about it to get in touch with their local shelter and see how they can help - in the name of someone they love.
MORE 11ALIVE HEADLINES