How To Save A Life

Woof Woof!

Today's post is all about how to save a life...A dog's to be specific. Two days ago me and Anthony adopted a dog from the HBSPCA. We saw a senior dog who had a one time history of biting a small child. Right away I gave the dog a 10% chance of being adopted. With experience from working at the shelter I know most people want puppy or close too. Our dog was already 8 - much less desirable. Mainly because of upcoming potential health concerns. Also because its not a tiny cute puppy, nor does it have tons and tons of energy. We were told she was surrendered because she bit a small child's face while the child was rough housing with her. That along sets her adoption rate back by 50%. Majority of the people who come in have children, or are around children. We don't have any, don't interact with any, and don't plan on having any for at least about 5-7 years and by that time she most likely won't be with us anymore - sad truth. So I thought....I have vet coverage so a senior dog doesn't scare me,  I can easily get her the best care during her senior years. It will also mean she won't be constantly bouncing around when I am trying to sleep for my overnights - Anthony the same. And as I explained the children thing isn't an issue. Keep in mind she is not aggressive what so ever! The child either frightened, hurt or couldn't read her warnings. A sad, unfortunate mistake. So in the end, we adopted her. Her name is Coco. 

This is a photo of Anthony and her when they first met at the shelter. Looks like she approves. We couldn't think of any clever name that sounded like Coco, so we kept her name. She is likely too old to learn a new one that sounds completely different. And there is not a lot of good choices that rhyme with Coco. I always picture a small foofoo dog when I hear the name Coco, but Ill get over it.

When she settled at home, she came to have the sweetest heart. She is constantly at your side looking for love and not mean at all. We introduced her to our friends dog Fox and they got along great! Plus, she didn't think twice about the cats. We are so happy about the adoption, we gave her a chance that she may not have got, at least for a long time. And thanks to us, she was only at the shelter for 2 days! Usually that's only the case for puppies and shih tzu's - people love shih tzu's. 

If you like the idea of helping out the animals in a shelter but can't necessarily adopt one, try contributing to the shelter. They hold a bunch of events annually and there are some really great ones. The next one is the National Cupcake Day. You can either contribute by baking, or by buying...or both ;). They set up cupcake decoration booths and displays of people's homemade recipes. The pets are also all on display for potential re-homing. And you can usually bring your own furry friend to most of their events! A few other events to mention: murder mystery dinner, wiggle waggle walk-a-thon, sock hop, and pictures with Santa. Those are just a few of my favourites. Check out your local shelters website for new events each month! 

D