Olivia

Most dogs end up with us because they have been neglected, abused, or abandoned.  Because of this, most of them also come with baggage, mental, physical, or both.  But every now and then, a dog like Olivia, our latest foster, comes along.  She and her brother had been in a nice home well loved and well cared for their entire lives.  Life got tough for their "mom" and sadly, she lost her home.  It was a tragic day for her when she had to say goodbye to her two dogs that she had shared her life with for the past 4 years.  Olivia is a middle aged, well behaved, mild mannered, and healthy dog.  She'd never seen the inside of a shelter or known hunger or loneliness.  The odd part was, she didn't fit in very well here.  I guess our house caters more to the troubled souls.  She was a spoiled dog, used to a quiet life.  She was depressed being away from her brother and her home and refused to eat.   Luckily, her time with us was to be short. 

I had a potential adopter that I had approved an application on months ago.  His references were wonderful.  His wish for the "perfect dog" was what held us up.  I appreciated his honesty in what he could handle.  This would be his first dog as an adult.  He admitted that he didn't know how to train a dog and he probably couldn't meet the needs of a dog with issues.  He also hoped for a settled dog, a little older, that wouldn't be bouncing off the walls all the time.  That in itself is a tall order for a boxer!  He'd told me that he was willing to wait for the right dog to come along, no matter how long it took.  I thought of him when I found out that we were getting this pair of dogs, although part of me figured he'd gone elsewhere to find his dog.  Little did I know, he had been following our rescue on facebook all along.  I didn't get a chance to reach out to him before he contacted me.  He too thought that either Olivia or her brother, Harley, might be a great fit for him. 

Olivia was clearly missing her life and after only a day was getting overly attached to me.  She never left my side and snapped at Jax and Dixie when they came near me.  I thought that if she was going to attach herself to someone, it may as well be her new family, if possible.  I'd hate to get her comfortable and then uproot her again.  So, I took her over to meet the adopter, who is only minutes from us.  It was love at first sight.  I came home alone.  Olivia stayed for the weekend.  I picked her up one more time to get her vetted and micro chipped, but she never came back to our house.  It was the fasted adoption I'd ever done. 

Her new family reports that she has finally started eating and coming out of her shell.  She lives with two guys and one of their girlfriends is there most of the time.  They have family and friends over often and everyone just adores Olivia.  She is once again a spoiled, happy girl.