Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Red: A Survivor's Story

I first met Red in February this year, when I began volunteering with the dogs who were rescued from Jeff Burgess's One More Chance Rescue and Adoption Center in Piqua.  (In case you've not been following the news, this man had 108 dogs in Piqua and 367 dogs in Clark County, all kept in horrible conditions - what may have started as a rescue quickly turned into a massive hoarding situation that spanned YEARS.) 

We may never know what happened to Red during her time at One More Chance--all I know is that when I looked at her face for the first time three months ago, I could tell she'd been through a lot.  Back in February, she was known only as Dog #33 - a spayed female hound mix.  Because there were so many dogs  & we split into teams to care for them, it took me a couple weeks before I got to spend any time one-on-one with Dog #33.  By that time, most of the dogs had realized we were nice people & it was okay to trust us, and jumped up & down eagerly when they saw us coming towards their pens with leashes.  Not Dog #33 - when I entered her pen with leash in hand, she sat in the back corner and gave me the wary expression you see in the picture above.  After I spent a few minutes talking softly to her, she allowed me to put a leash on her & take her on a walk around the warehouse.  She lived up to her "hound" label, eagerly sniffing everything in her path.  From then on, she realized I was trustworthy and didn't shy away when I walked her.

As the weeks went by, Dog #33 came out of her shell more and more, and she was christened as "Red" by one of the volunteers.  We worked hard to try & find homes for Red and all of the other dogs at the shelter, and eventually someone associated with the raid on the shelter said she would give Red a home...she just needed to fence in her yard first.  Another volunteer, who Red had really taken a liking to, agreed to foster Red until the yard got fenced in. 

Through Red's foster mom's Facebook page, I got to celebrate Red's small victories, like the first time she felt comfortable enough to lay on the ground:
Or when she finally figured out that couches were really comfortable to lay on:
Or seeing a happy doggy smile on her face as she enjoyed the sunshine she'd been deprived of for so long:

The reason I'm featuring Red on my blog is because the person who was going to take her no longer can (for reasons unknown to me), and her foster mom belileves she deserves to live in a home where she's the center of attention.  I got to see Red again recently and want to share some pictures so you can see how much she's come out of her shell when compared to the scared, shy dog I met a few months ago!

Like most dogs who've been through experiences as horrible as what Red suffered during her time at One More Chance, Red has some "issues."  Her main issue is that she has yet to find a man she trusts--and who can blame her, after how she was treated by the man who ran the "rescue?"  She is so scared of men that, in her new foster home, she won't come out of her pen if her foster dad is the only one home!  (If her foster mom is there, she will come out and will even sit on the couch near her foster dad...which is progress!) Seeing as how her foster mom is due to leave on a long vacation in less than two months, we know it would be best to find Red a home before then so Red does not have to deal with the anxiety of being left alone with a man for two weeks. 

She is not aggressive towards men--she is definitely scared & submissive.  She did meet my husband on the day I took these pictures--I had warned him that she was very fearful of men so he basically didn't pay attention to her until she approached him.  She would stand right up against his legs while I was petting her and, after a while, he was able to pet her as well.  (This doesn't surprise me, as all dogs seem to love him!)  I think Red just needs some time to learn that all men aren't bad, and needs a forever home where her new owners can devote time to working with her so she can come to that realization!

I asked her foster mom to tell me about Red's personality, since she knows her a lot better than I do!  She says Red is very sweet and loves to cuddle.  She does very well in a yard that's not fenced in.  She walks very, VERY well on a leash - doesn't pull at all! - and she loves going on walks!  She loves almost all women but, as I said above, isn't too sure about men yet.  She is very good with all other dogs!

Her foster mom also said, "Really breaks my heart to not be able to keep her but she really needs a home where she has someone that can make her the center of attention that she's never been before."

If you'd like to give Red her forever home, please contact her foster mom, Jennifer at (937) 405-8048 or by e-mail at medic18911@gmail.com.

Just because I'm a relentless shutterbug & want everyone to see what a gorgeous girl Red is, here are a couple more pictures!

Here's Red, happily sniffing away in the yard:

And here's Red, getting reaquainted with Sly, a fellow One More Chance survivor who's also currently in foster care:
I know this has been an unusually long post, but after everything Red suffered at the hands of a man who's currently awaiting trial in two counties for a combined total of 57 counts of animal cruelty...well, I just really want her to have the happy ending she deserves.  Thanks for reading, and please share this with anyone who might be interested in giving Red a home!

4 comments:

  1. She is beautiful! I hope she finds a great home.

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  2. Red is such an amazing girl! I hope she finds the home she deserves! Hugs and kisses to you Red!

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  3. I am the daughter of Red's foster mom, and I couldn't be sadder at the fact that she has to go. Red has been a great addition to the family in the short amount of time that she has been in our home. I love this girl to death and I hope and pray she finds the home where she is meant to be. Please, everyone who reads this, please try and think to yourself if you can take this precious dog and give her the care and attention she needs. Not only will I be eternally grateful, but so will my mom and Red too!

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  4. What happened to "Red". I was also a volunteer there as one of the vets on staff. My email is animalanguage@gmail.com Thanks

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