The furnishings are sparse in Diane Woods-Kavalski's one-bedroom apartment.

The few belongings she has - a table, two chairs, a few plates, a bed and a television that is so old you have to turn the dial to change the channels - were given to her by neighbors and food pantries.

There are two photos taped to the wall: One shows her granddaughter coming down a slide, and the second is of her brother. The photos and her dog, Retia, are all the 53-year-old woman has left after fighting drug addiction and enduring a long string of bad luck.

And she wouldn't have Retia if not for the new pet assistance program offered by the King's Harvest organization that provides temporary housing for the pets of homeless persons until they can find housing.

Woods-Kavalski kicked a methamphetamine habit in December 2008 after she was hit by a truck while crossing the street in Tacoma, Wash. She broke her pelvis in four spots and her tailbone in two places. Doctors told her at the time that they would be surprised if she ever walked again.

"If it wasn't for that little girl, I wouldn't be up on my feet," Woods-Kavalski said of Retia, her 9-year-old Chihuahua. "She's become my survival, my life, the best companion. She knows when I'm upset, she knows when I'm hurting. When I got hit by that truck, she stayed beside me, would not leave that bed."

Her children also were addicted to the drug, and her grandchildren were taken by the state of Washington, so a family from Davenport convinced her leave to Washington for the Quad-Cities and start a new life away from her family.

On July 8, she arrived in the Quad-Cities after riding for three days in the back of a U-Haul truck with Retia and boxes full of clothes, towels, household items and toys her grandchildren had played with before she lost custody of them. Less than two months later, she says, the family that convinced her to move 2,000 miles across the country kicked her out on the street without an explanation.

All she had were a few changes of clothes, the photos, a pay-as-you-go cell phone and her dog. The family refused to give Woods-Kavalski her belongings, and she says the police told her it was a civil matter, so they could not help.

A friend she made in Davenport agreed to take Retia while Woods-Kavalski stayed at the Humility of Mary Shelter Inc. But she did not have any transportation and could not visit Retia, so the lonely dog began relieving itself in the friend's house.

Retia was then moved around to a few different homes until Woods-Kavalski found someone who lived in the downtown area who could care for the dog. That arrangement worked until Retia was clipped by the wheel of a car when the temporary caregiver let her outside without supervision Aug. 13.

"She laid there for 20 minutes in the road and they thought she was dead," Woods-Kavalski recalled as tears filled her eyes. "I was in tears, I busted out and I lost it. ... I got up to her and she was in these people's yard and she started coming to. She spotted me and was just wiggling her body and just jumping up and down. I think she was more in shock."

The accident happened shortly before the 9 p.m. curfew at Humility of Mary, so Woods-Kavalski was forced to leave Retia in order to keep her bed at the shelter. But she decided that night that if a safe place could not be found for the dog, she would live on the street with her pet.

The next morning, Cindi Gramenz, the program director for Humility of Mary, found that safe place.

"Cindi came down and said, 'Diane, I've got some good news for you.' And I go, 'What?' She said, 'I found a place that will take your dog until you get on your feet and out of here.' All I could say was 'Yes, there is a God.' "

So far, Woods-Kavalski is the only Humility of Mary resident to use King's Harvest's new pet assistance program, but Gramenz said they usually come across someone every two to three months who will not enter the shelter because a pet cannot be brought along. Gramenz knows of one woman who chose to sleep in her car with her pet rather than give it up to enter a shelter.

"It's very difficult for some individuals who don't have children or family. Their pets are the only thing they have," she said. "So that might be the one thing that's with them constantly that doesn't pass judgment, doesn't do whatever. It's like a kid to some of these people."

King's Harvest took Retia that afternoon, provided her with veterinary care and boarded her at Terri's Dog Styling School in Davenport. Just as Retia helped Woods-Kavalski heal after her accident, the dog also provided her owner with the motivation she needed to improve her life.

Woods-Kavalski convinced a landlord to open an eight-unit building that he had closed and was trying to sell, allowing her to move in with no money down. In exchange, the woman, who is disabled, painted and fixed up the apartments and even found tenants to rent them. She moved in Aug. 31 and got Retia back two days later.

"I slept on the floor, didn't have any blankets, didn't have nothing," she said. "But I had my dog. I had my best friend."

She nearly lost Retia a second time on Friday, Oct. 9, when the dog was diagnosed with pyometra, or an infection of the uterus. Retia needed emergency surgery or she would die, but with a monthly disability income of $692, Woods-Kavalski couldn't afford the $1,000 surgery. North Brady Animal Hospital in Davenport agreed to do the surgery at a reduced rate and work with Woods-Kavalski on a payment plan.

"Normally we try to work something out through CareCredit," said Kathy VanBuer, veterinarian, referring to a no-interest credit card that can be used for veterinary expenses. "But we all have good hearts and don't want to see the animal suffer."

As Retia came out of surgery, Woods-Kavalski, who had been hysterical for hours, kissed Retia and said, "Now it's my turn to stay by your side."