Debbie

I want adoptions to work, for the dog and for the family welcoming them home. And sometimes that means asking questions that aren't quite as exciting as choosing a collar or getting their bed ready.

I hear the words “they’re a rescue” used to explain so many things. They’re nervous because they’re a rescue. They don’t like men because they’re a rescue. They bark at other dogs because they’re a rescue. If they are worried about being touched, we can find ourselves wondering what must have happened to them before they came to us. Sometimes a dog’s past shapes how they feel about the world. Of course there will. But being a rescue isn't a personality type, and we don't always know what...

There seems to have been a real shift in what we expect from dogs. Somewhere along the way, we have started to believe that a "good" dog is one who happily greets every stranger, tolerates every hand reaching towards them, enjoys every dog they meet, and remains endlessly patient no matter what is asked of them. I often wonder when that became the expectation. Dogs are social animals, but social does not mean sociable with everyone. Think about your own life. Most of us have people we...