All Rescue Ranch dogs are special and deserve to live their best lives. To ensure the best outcome possible we always look for that special connection between dog and potential adopter. Some dogs wait forever. Others are luckier. Sometimes their person is as close as the room next door. Zoie is one such case: a lonely surrendered dog who found love and a new family last weekend with Rescue Ranch foster and staff member, AliCarmen Carico.
Rescue Ranch doesn’t normally take owner-surrenders because we just don’t have the resources. Instead, we encourage owners to exhaust all other options, and we help where we can. That being said, under very exceptional circumstances, we’ll sometimes take a surrendered dog.
In this case, Zoie’s owner had raised her from a puppy and loved her dearly, but he brought her in as a last resort. He was in a forced move situation, and dogs were not allowed where he was going. He was out of options and in distress.
Had she been a larger dog, we could not have taken her, but she was a small Chihuahua-Shih Tzu mix. We felt that, given the circumstances, we could find a space for her.
It was heartbreaking. This happy little dog, who had lived in her home for all of her seven years, suddenly found herself in a noisy kennel surrounded by strangers. She would never see her human again.
Fast forward two weeks to National Adoption Weekend.
Last weekend Rescue Ranch particpated in Best Friends Animal Society’s National Adoption event. It promotes adoption over purchase and highlights the current overpopulation crisis in shelters around the country.
As rescuers, we already have “adoption on the brain” but, if possible, adoption was in even sharper relief last weekend at the ranch.
Meanwhile, Ali hadn’t forgotten Zoie. The little dog back in the Pocket Pooches kennel group was still on her mind. As National Adoption Weekend rolled around, she began toying with the idea of adding Zoie to her family. She would have to consult her husband, Dave. They already had three dogs, two cats and a rabbit. They were also fostering a rescued mom and pups. Nevertheless, she saw many similarities between the gentle Shih Tzu and their late pug, whom Dave missed very much. She suggested he come in for a meet-and-greet.
He did. The connection was instantaneous. Zoie had found her new family.
Zoie the surrendered dog goes home
When Zoie, now Rosie, arrived home, Ali and Dave kept her separate but visible in an Ex-pen. But by the next morning, Rosie was out exploring the house and interacting with her housemates. Ali says she is a perfect Chihuahua-Shih Tzu blend: she’s confident, friendly, playful, quiet, and not overly needy. They’ve discovered that Rosie is afraid of loud rainy storms and needs a little extra support in those situations. But otherwise, she’s a well-adjusted happy dog.
We think she’s doing amazingly well given her recent traumatic life changes. That’s one lucky surrendered dog!
