(Pictured is sweet, lively little Bonita who is patiently waiting for her loving forever family. For more information on her CLICK HERE) When you look into an animal’s eyes, they can tell you so much without saying anything at all. They can tell you how happy they are to see you, or they can tell you how scared they are.
They can tell you how much they want that treat in your hand, or how sorry they are about the accident on the carpet. But one thing they can’t tell you is history. They can’t tell you how long it’s been since they received a loving hug or ear scratch. They can’t tell you how often they would get left outside on a freezing night, or how many times someone forgot to feed them. But that truth still remains, regardless of who knows about it.
Many of our animals here at the shelter come with stories. I could tell you about the dog we have who was found chained to a cement block in a flooded basement, or the kitten that came in literally crawling with fleas. We have a dog that sustained injuries to both her leg and tail, and was never given medical treatment. The list is endless, and the stories can be horrifying. When we hear about backgrounds such as these, we don’t tend to judge unwanted behaviours quite so quickly. We can overlook bad habits because we are trying to work with an animal who was formerly not given the care they so deserved.
(Below Chihuahua Mix Sparky and Sport who need to be adopted together. For more information CLICK HERE).
(Below Jake, a lab mix looking for a home. For more information CLICK HERE).
When a stray dog or cat comes in, we always try and get as much information as possible, but sometimes there just isn’t any. Does that mean that they had a perfect life? Does that mean that they were never
mistreated? No, it only means that if they were, we don’t know about it. In a perfect world they could talk to us, tell us everything, and we could in turn reassure them that everything is going to be ok.
We often have members of the public come in and view our animals. Yes when entering the dog kennels it gets loud. Some of the dogs can even get downright intimidating. Some dogs we know came from places where they were mistreated, and their actions are easily explained. But sometimes when people come in, and an animal gives a somewhat “negative” reaction, we honestly have no explanation. There is absolutely no way of knowing what happened to them.
(Below Charley Murphy available for adoption. For more information CLICK HERE).
The old adage never judge a book by its cover does always come to mind here. Some of our best animals are the ones that are initially shy, scared, grumpy, odd, or otherwise. Nothing is more rewarding than having an animal come in with a certain demeanor, and watch them change as you show them that not everything is lost. It just takes more time for some. So the next time you are in the market for a new friend, pick the kitty hiding in the litter box, or the dog jumping up and barking his head off at you. Pick the one that has no story, because the day you take them home, is when theirs will begin.
(From the heart of Jennifer Wiken, RVT). For all animals available for adoption CLICK HERE
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