another animal from work! except this one was adopted a while back
she was the first dog that i really formed a deep bond with at the shelter. she's also the first dog that got loose on me (whoops). we'll call her F. c:
F was a super cute dog, which ended up getting her adopted not once, not twice, not three times...but five. all in the span of a few weeks. as adorable (and sweet!) as she was, she definitely was a puppy with no training. and despite our warnings, family after family adopter her on impulse only to bring her back when they realized that she was a little too much to handle.
F kind of became a model of "shut-down" behavior for me- the first look at what stress can do to a dog. every time she got brought back, her behavior was worse. it's a pattern that i recognize now, and i see it all the time with our dogs. F went from being a happy and playful dog to suddenly being afraid of doors, then afraid of her kennel, then afraid of everything. she became destructive, chewing the harness right off of her back. the stress of being "adopted" every few days or so, only to be brought back to the same place, was too much for her. at one point, the only way we could get her back into her kennel was by crawling on the ground with her and leading her in. one day, i sat in her kennel with her and stayed with her like that for a good 20 minutes, just to help her feel like her life was a little more stable. the only part of her she didn't lose was how sweet she was; despite being let down so many times by people, she was always wanting human attention.
i'm happy to say that F was adopted many many months ago and has stayed there happily since. she actually ended up going home
with a dog trainer, which was the perfect fit for her. i miss her, and i miss her "hugs" (where she would stand on her hind legs and wrap her paws around my tummy) but it's the best outcome i could have asked for. as of today, she's one of 3 dogs in my time at the shelter that i've had such a powerful bond with.
she was the first dog that i really formed a deep bond with at the shelter. she's also the first dog that got loose on me (whoops). we'll call her F. c:
F was a super cute dog, which ended up getting her adopted not once, not twice, not three times...but five. all in the span of a few weeks. as adorable (and sweet!) as she was, she definitely was a puppy with no training. and despite our warnings, family after family adopter her on impulse only to bring her back when they realized that she was a little too much to handle.
F kind of became a model of "shut-down" behavior for me- the first look at what stress can do to a dog. every time she got brought back, her behavior was worse. it's a pattern that i recognize now, and i see it all the time with our dogs. F went from being a happy and playful dog to suddenly being afraid of doors, then afraid of her kennel, then afraid of everything. she became destructive, chewing the harness right off of her back. the stress of being "adopted" every few days or so, only to be brought back to the same place, was too much for her. at one point, the only way we could get her back into her kennel was by crawling on the ground with her and leading her in. one day, i sat in her kennel with her and stayed with her like that for a good 20 minutes, just to help her feel like her life was a little more stable. the only part of her she didn't lose was how sweet she was; despite being let down so many times by people, she was always wanting human attention.
i'm happy to say that F was adopted many many months ago and has stayed there happily since. she actually ended up going home
with a dog trainer, which was the perfect fit for her. i miss her, and i miss her "hugs" (where she would stand on her hind legs and wrap her paws around my tummy) but it's the best outcome i could have asked for. as of today, she's one of 3 dogs in my time at the shelter that i've had such a powerful bond with.
