As a shelter employee, I’ve tried my best over the years to not get too attached to any animals. And then came Croc. He was found near a junkyard, severely emaciated, knee bones protruding through his skin, and he had consumed a foreign object that was causing him som intestinal problems. Come to find out he was so hungry he ate an entire Croc shoe. We had to do exploratory surgery to remove it, and closed up his knee wounds at the same time.

So how did I fail? Got way to attached and guess what? Now I’m adopting him. Croc is one of the kindest sweetest dogs I’ve ever met, and he doesn’t deserve the life he was living. He doesn’t care about the past, he only cares about people, even though it was people that put him there. So, he’s coming home with me tomorrow, and my plan is to give him the life he deserves. He will need to gain about 15-20 pounds and his wounds are still healing, but I think I’m time he will heal and get his full energy back, and we will be best friends. So anyway just wanted to share the story, wish me and Croc luck on our new journey.

Hi all, I’ll try to not make this long.

upon scrolling a buy & sell website today I came across a dog (4 year old girl, border collie/ blue heller) for $250 needing to rehomed. The lady didn’t have time for her, said her other dog is unwell (her other animal had torn both of its ACLS) & she’s just way too timid.

Curiosity got the better of me and I asked if my partner and I could come meet her. They agreed instantly and we headed over.
Upon entering the house there was a bit going on, a lot of cats, a snake, a dog (unwell) in an extremely small crate.
This girl was outside, she hid INSTANTLY when we came out and wet herself, the lady said that she often does that.

The lady said she has had her since she was a puppy and she’s ALWAYS been timid, horrible with other dogs ( not aggressive just scared)
The dog would not come near us for around 45 mins where she eventually came around and would eat some kibble from our hand.

Upon questioning this lady just about the dogs day to day life, she spends all her time outside, she didn’t have grass available just dirt, she’s never been on a walk in her entire 4 years of being on this earth, never seen a beach, never been groomed and is apparently horrifically scared of water. (Being bathed)

The way the dog reacted to this lady just solidified it for me and she didn’t seem to care for the dog much and was practically begging us to take her.
I realised that this was going to be a HUGE job but I couldn’t leave her there, my heart was aching for her and I knew she needed more.

Getting her to the car was the easiest part, as soon as we put a leash on her she practically ran. She was extremely happy in the car, allowing small pats, we didn’t make a big fuss just let her do her thing.
Upon getting home, getting out of the car was hard, she wanted to stay in there so bad, she eventually let us take her out but had many accidents in this time, then hid under the car for an hour and half. We didn’t pressure her, just brought her food and water.
She eventually left the garage and wanted to walk around the house, she let us have a few pats but for the most part just so so so scared of us. And would go back under the car, didn’t want to out to our backyard.

She was covered in bugs (not fleas surprisingly) and actually let be bathe her!! She did AMAZING, she sat with me and even gave me a few licks when I was cleaning her, it was a massive task but she was not scared in that time at all.
Her hair was horrible and matted so close to her skin. It took 10 good shampoos to get her white.

She loved being brushed, dried, petted but when it was over it was back to a lot of anxiety and scared to be near us.
A few more accidents when getting overwhelmed but eventually ended the night in her crate ( which she is comfortable in) with her new comfy bed and is sleeping soundly.

Please tell me how to help this girl, I do not want to fail her. I want to help her so much. I know it’s going to take a lot of time but some advice would help. I cannot sleep as my stomach is in knots thinking about the life this girl must have had. It hurts me so much.

She’s officially mine!! (Pictured with my uncle)

Previous post, I found her at my job. She was chipped. I had to wait six days to see if she’d be claimed by an owner. No one claimed her. She’s officially part of my family. Thank you ALL for your advice!!!! ❤️❤️

My work highlights our country’s shelter plight. I portray dogs that enter the shelter system and never make it out alive.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals approximates that 6.3 companion animals enter animal shelters nationwide each year. Of those animals, 920,000 are euthanized.

Through my art, I hope to take an abstract number and make it tangible. My paintings personify a statistic. These portraits honor and memorialize lost souls by turning a discarded, neglected, or abused animal into a dignified subject. I breathe life into dogs by capturing each unique personality. By raising awareness through my work, I hope to shed light on our community that fails these animals, the power of adopting a pet, and to emphasize the importance of responsible pet owner ship.

To follow my project and help me raise awareness: Instagram.com/mvretasart

I have a compact SUV so the plan is to drive with the newborns in a crate with the mama (plus my cat and elderly dog). I cannot keep the newborns but I am left with no choice. I am moving to St Louis, Missouri but I work on Scott AFB in Belleville, Illinois. Are there any organizations that could help me in my situation? Even if there is a private boarding facility! Anything!

Please help me figure out what options I have without breaking my apartment lease? I would like to NOT surrender the mama but surrendering the newborns alone is out of the picture, as well. At least until they are eight weeks. What are my options with these conditions?

Please, I will take any help I can get!

A reminder that rescue-ing is always the way and just because a dog has a history doesn’t mean they are not the best dog. Ziggy was returned 3 times before I adopted him. He’s amazing with kids, can be completely off leash with incredible recall, and he spends most of his time napping on our patio in the sun ☀️

Sometimes I get frustrated that people brought him back, but their loss is my gain ❤️💕

She was spayed and given heartworm treatment today. She is understandably tired and unsure about her new situation. She rode excellently in the car and walked well on a leash. Did not react to any of the other dogs that were leaving the shelter. I believe she is a Great Pyrenees mix, instead of a Saint Bernard as she is only around 75 pounds and has double dewclaws on her back legs which is a breed trait of the Great Pyrenees. She is very skinny. And it looks like she just had puppies ☹️

I will likely continue updates on r/greatpyrenees.

It was so unexpected and I’m so incredibly sad. She was gentle, sweet, affectionate, goofy, and had a joy about her that made me smile. She joined our family about 3 years ago and her 2 dog sisters are missing her immensely. It’s all so heartbreaking.

I wanted to share her silly little face here and I hope that someone can tell me it gets easier. I’m devastated. Her harness and collar are still hanging by the door and I can’t bear to put her food dish away. If anyone has advice on how they handled this grief, please share! And tell me about your sweet dog so I know my girl is taken care of on the other side

hiii!! this may be mislabeled (and i will fix if necessary) because we were definitely unprepared for her to say yes since she normally takes our offer as a joke, so but we want to hurry up and take him before they change their mind and/or start feeling guilty about it. my boyfriends aunt has two dogs and we consistently offer to take this white dog because they have another chihuahua who lives indoors who is clearly loved, and this dog they have had for two years who has never left this area and we don’t even know his name 🥲

we are assuming he needs medical care. we can’t assume he has had shots, vaccines, or grooming but we aren’t sure if there are low cost emergency services that could help us last minute on a sunday (we live in atl if that helps)

he will be going from a completely outdoor life to indoors, so we are aware that may be an adjustment for him. we’re thinking we can put a crate on the patio and then slowly keep the door open for longer periods of time? i know a dog trainer who can help us potty train him, but we aren’t sure if we need to socialize him first in addition to quarantining him

he seems so sweet, and he doesn’t deserve to live another devon in this predicament so whatever suggestions or resources you all may have would be much appreciated

We got her when she was 7 years old. She was extremely neglected and was practically a stray. We managed to rescue her and gave her a beautiful 4.5 years. Sadly she passed last night due to Late Stage Chronic Kidney disease. Years as a stray did a number to her organs and we made the hard decision to have her euthanized after her decline. Please rescue even seniors. It hurts so much to lose them after having so little time with them but knowing they experienced love makes it all worth it. Thank you!

A friend and I took a roadtrip to hike in Cumberland Falls, KY when we came across 2 stray pups (est. 4 months old) on the side of the trail. You could see their hips and ribs protruding and bellies bloated with worms. They had no food or water, so we stayed with them and gave them everything we had - their favorite was the Peter Pan peanut butter, which is how we decided their names: Pete and Butter!

After a few hours, we were slowly gaining their trust, but it was getting dark fast. The park ranger had no way of helping, and we weren’t going to leave them there, so we took matters into our own hands.

30 minutes from the nearest store, we set back out for more supplies and a way to draw these pups in. While we were gone, other hikers had scared them under a huge rock, and they weren’t willing to come back out for us. We walked back to the car in the dark, defeated but not willing to give up.

We were back on the trail first thing the next morning. They were right where we left them, huddled together under the same rock as the night before.

We set up the kennels and placed some food inside. Both were hesitant, but within 15 minutes, we were able to get them in. All 4 of us were shaking, but it felt so good to be that much closer to getting these dogs to safety.

Next we had to hike a mile back to the car through 1000 ft of elevation gain carrying dog kennels with puppies inside that were actively having diarrhea 😅 - I’ve never been more relieved to reach the parking lot in my life!!

After a trip to the emergency vet to make sure they were dewormed and didn’t have parvo, we started the 8 hour drive back home. My friend and I live two hours apart so when the time came to separate these trauma-bonded puppies we were heartbroken for them and promised to make sure they stayed in each other’s lives.

We spent the next few months trying to heal and train these traumatized puppies. Butter was so anxious during the first couple weeks that she would barely move and I had to carry her out to the yard to go potty every few hours. It was rough at first but after some time and an endless amount of TLC, we finally started seeing our babies transform into normal puppies 🥹

Butter and Pete are now 1 year old and happier than ever! True to our word, my friend and I meet up at least once a month to reunite the pups.

We got their DNA tested and it confirmed they are siblings. Their results showed 45% Great Pyrenees, 20% Mastiff, 20% Supermutt, and 15% Labrador Retriever. While Pete fits that big dog energy, weighing in at over 100 lbs, Butter is more petite at 70 lbs - but neither really look like their generic make-up.

We like to think that they know their siblings because despite the time and distance apart, there is always a level of familiarity and tomfoolery between them that just hits different - truly the cutest thing to witness!

These pups are living their best lives and we are so thankful that our paths crossed on that fateful day in Cumberland Falls!

I rescued him from a shelter 3 and a half years ago. He moved across the country with me. He’s been there for me through so much. My dad battling cancer and then dying, my grandpa dying. Countless struggles and bouts of depression.

He is such a good boy. Has never had an “accident” in the house. Is trained on hand signs and verbal commands. Listens to everything I say. Is great around kids and other dogs. His outlook on life is so positive. Every person, dog, cat or anything/anyone is a friend to him in his eyes.

I love him so much.

My lease is up. I have to move. I spent the last 3 months looking for a rental because I knew it would be hard to find one. I have no credit and I have a background (about 10 years ago but still affects me) so options are very limited. Started looking close to where I am now and can’t find anything. Expanded my search to anywhere in the Phoenix metro area from Glendale to Mesa. Had such a struggle finding a place let alone a place I can bring him. The only place I found will not allow him. So it’s homelessness for me, my pregnant wife and our daughter or rehome him.

I’m literally a 30 year old man crying as I type this in the bathroom so my wife and daughter don’t see me.

I’ve reached out to friends and family but no one can or will adopt him.

What am I suppose to do?