Welcome Buddy: What to expect when adopting a dog

An American Staffordshire Terrier puppy.

I am pleased to introduce the newest member of our family…drumroll please…meet Buddy!

Brindle puppy licking his nose.

This was our first time adopting an animal. It was a new experience, made even more unusual by the need to social distance. In case any of you are considering adopting from a shelter  for the first time, I thought sharing my experience might help you know what to expect when adopting a dog…or any other animal, I imagine.

Once we started to feel the yearning for a furry friend and spent some time contemplating the pros and cons of taking on the responsibility of bringing a dog into our home, we decided we’d really like to rescue this time…offer our loving care to a dog that needed a permanent family.

When we got Charlie…15 years ago…he was a gift for my husband. I researched breeds and decided a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel was a good fit for our household. I looked at shelters, but there were no Cavaliers available in the area, so I moved on to breeders. That’s where I found…and fell in love with…Charlie. He was a loving companion…and we were devoted caregivers…for nearly 15 years. I do not regret my decision.

However, this time around, we were determined to rescue. We started by downloading the Petfinder app. Petfinder is an online, searchable database of animals from nearly 11,000 shelters and adoption organizations across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In their own words, “From the comfort of their personal computers, pet lovers can search for a pet that best matches their needs. They can then reference a shelter’s web page and discover what services it offers. Petfinder also includes discussion forums, a pet-care resource directory and a library of free pet-care articles to help keep pets in their homes.”

You can filter your search by type of animal (dog, cat, etc.), location, breed, age, size, gender, behavior, coat length, and/or color. We were looking for a young medium-sized dog, preferably house-trained, within 100 miles. We received numerous results, which included photos, brief histories, and information on how to apply with the shelter seeking to find a home for that particular dog.

We ended up applying to three different shelters. The first dog that seemed like he might be a good fit was at PAWS. We filled out a lengthy application about our living circumstances, our home environment, and our experience with pet ownership. The very next day, I received a text message that the dog we enquired about had already found a new home. Good for him…disappointing for us.

The next dog we were drawn to happened to be at a different shelter, requiring a new application with similar but different questions. We never did hear back from them. Eventually, we saw on Petfinder that the dog was no longer available, presumably also adopted by another family.

All of this led us to Buddy. Once we saw his adorable face, we were smitten. Buddy was described as an American Staffordshire Terrier Mix, less than a year old, house and crate trained, and very loving…sometimes thinking of himself as a lap dog. He had survived parvovirus and the isolation that comes with that, was fully recovered, but needed some help building confidence. 

Of course, it was a different shelter from the previous attempts, so we completed another online application, this time with Celestial Zoo Pet Rescue. We didn’t hear anything for a couple of days, and then I got a text. Were we still interested in Buddy? Of course, we were. So the shelter volunteer put us in touch with Buddy’s foster mom.

Because of COVID-19, we were not able to have an in-person meet and greet. Instead, we met through FaceTime. We were able to ask questions about her experience with Buddy, whom she had been fostering for about two weeks, and she followed him around with the camera, so we could see him in action.

With a successful meeting between potential adopters (us) and foster mom, the next step was a virtual home inspection. Using FaceTime again, I walked a shelter employee (or perhaps volunteer) through each room of our house and then into the yard, walking the fence line to reassure her that there were no escape routes and showing her the latches on the gates. She assured us we had passed inspection and would be hearing from the owner shortly.

The next day, we got the message…we had been approved! We could adopt Buddy! Just one complication…by then it was the day before Christmas Eve. It wouldn’t be possible to finalize the adoption and transfer custody before Christmas. The day after Christmas, Larry and I were headed out of town. Luckily, Buddy’s wonderful foster mom was not anxious to see him go and agreed to foster him for two more weeks.

During the two weeks that we were out of town, we kept in touch with Buddy’s foster mom, and she was kind enough to send us pictures. Without having ever met in person, we were already in love.

Finally the day arrived to make things official. We met at a local PetSmart (not a bad move on their part…picture new pet shopping sprees). Anyway…we met the shelter owner first and completed a contract wherein we agreed to keep Buddy safe and well cared for, not to sell him or give him away (like we ever would!). They warranted that Buddy was healthy and had been vaccinated and microchipped and would be neutered by their approved veterinary hospital as soon as an appointment was available. We paid a $100 deposit, and we were now Buddy’s foster-to-adopt parents. (Once the neutering is complete, we will pay the balance of $200, which includes the vaccination, microchipping, and neutering costs, and Buddy will be ours permanently.)

Just as we finished the paperwork, Buddy arrived with his foster family. He was even cuter…and bigger…than his photos. He was a little hesitant at first…and if I’m honest, more interested in the cats that were there for an adoption event than us people. He did let us pet him and was more than happy to display his sit and shake talents…for a treat of course. 

It was pure joy, until the time came for Buddy’s foster family to leave. I was naively unprepared for how hard that would be. As they left the store, Buddy tried to follow. When that wasn’t allowed, he cried…and I do mean cried. It was heartbreaking. Any plans we had for a shopping spree (luckily we already had the basics) were quickly abandoned. As soon as the previous foster family left the parking lot, we followed and took Buddy home.

Brindle pup riding in the car.

Upon arriving at our home, he was nervous and occasionally whimpered, but he was also curious and did some exploring. He stayed close to us…his new humans. We were only too happy to stay close to him. Surprisingly, he slept through the night…well until 4:30 the next morning…in his own bed next to ours.

That was three days ago. Each day he becomes more confident. He will use the doggy door without prompting, happily eats his food and plays with his toys, and curls up next to me while I work.

Bearded man petting a young dog.

He does have some separation anxiety. If I dare go in a room and shut the door, he sits outside said door and whines until I come back out. Then he’s happy again.

And he’s a quick learner! As I mentioned, he already knew sit and shake when he came to us. In the past day, he’s learned stay. We’ll work on come and heel next, so that we can explore the world together in safety.

In these few days, he’s stolen our hearts…and I think he is on his way to trusting enough to give his heart to us. 

Your turn

  1. What kind of animal was your first pet and what was his or her name?
  2. Do you have a funny animal story?
  3. What else is on our mind? Anything at all, I just love to hear from you.

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20 Comments

  1. Christie, Buddy is so gorgeous. I’m pleased you’ve found a new doggie to bring into your lives. Lots of love will have him settled in no time. I’m sure you’re going to have lots of adventures together

    1. Thank you Jennifer. We are in heaven! He is such a sweet dog. We’ve already had lots of laughter and snuggles with him. We were hesitant to make the commitment of owning another pet (and giving our hearts away…losing Charlie was hard), but we are glad we did. We’re all in now!

  2. I love your story of socially distanced adoption. I am sure Buddy will bring you a lot of happiness. My son adopted a beautiful bichon frise from a rescue centre a few years ago. I have had lots of cats, some of them rescues but no dogs.

    1. Hello Anne. It feels good to offer a stable home to such a sweet dog, who has been through so much in his short life. I’m impressed at how quickly he is settling in. And yes, he has already brought us much joy. I so appreciate the good work pet rescues do, and I was impressed by how thorough they were in examining us to be sure we would be good, longtime caregivers.

  3. What a lovely happily ever after story Christie. Buddy looks like he’s going to be a great companion for you once he’s fully settled in. Hopefully someone will be home most of the time to keep him company – but how wonderful that he now has a forever family to love him. It looks like a win/win all round.

    1. Thanks Leanne. Buddy is getting more comfortable and independent each day–as long as we aren’t too far away. Luckily, Larry is self-employed and works from home (even without a pandemic), and I will most likely be working from home for the next six months anyway, so Buddy will have lots of company. We will be working to get him to a point where Larry and I could go out for a few hours without traumatizing poor Buddy. You’re right, though, it’s definitely a win/win.

  4. What beautiful markings! He is one handsome boy. We have rescued our last 3 dogs and only one never did release her early issues. It’s always difficult with a rescue not knowing exactly what they went through before you got them – our one dog obviously had some strong negative trauma in her life before us. Our current pup is a joy. She’s smart, gentle and loves everyone. Sounds like you’ve got a winner with Buddy, too.

    1. He is a good-looking dog, Pat, and such a love. It breaks my heart to think of what some animals go through. This is Buddy’s fourth home in six months, but he has been dearly loved (from what I can see) in the past two at least. I wish I could explain to him that he doesn’t have to change families ever again, but hopefully he will realize that with time. I’m glad that you also have a loving pup. It makes such a difference in our lives.

    1. Thank you Janis. I do highly recommend the Petfinder app. It brings animals from all different shelters into one place for you to look through. I must warn you…once you start looking you will want to adopt immediately! I thought I was just browsing, but them I wanted to rescue all of them. (I stopped at one though.) ?

  5. Hi, Christie – This is an inspiring and uplifting story about Buddy. I’m so glad that he found such a wonderful home.
    And I completely agree — he has a VERY adorable face!
    Congratulations!

  6. The first pet I remember is our puppy Pokey, although I’ve seen pictures and been told we had a dog named Brutus in California. (A boxer maybe?)
    I can’t wait to meet and love on Buddy!

    1. I have vague memories of Brutus. He was a boxer. And there was a dog named Spooky…not because he was scary, but because he was easily spooked…as I recall. But Pokey is the first dog I remember clearly. I remember bringing him home as a puppy, not sure Mom would let us keep him. You are going to love Buddy, for sure!

  7. Buddy is gorgeous and I’m glad he’s found a forever home with you. As an aside, my pooch (now 12) will still lie on the bed and watch the closed toilet door until I come out – just in case she misses me (or I go out the other way…not that there is another way, but Kali thinks there just might possibly be).

  8. That very lucky boy!! He has been adopted by a blue ribbon family. I know he is already counting his lucky stars. Have to admit I got a little choked up when I read about Buddy’s dismay at watching his foster family leave without him. So confusing to these animals when changes happen that we can’t explain to them. I just hate leaving our kitties for that reason. They hopefully know we are coming back, but I can’t be sure. Every time I leave the house for even a few moments, I call back to them that I will be back soon. But I can’t really say that when we leave for a week long trip.
    Buddy sounds very intelligent. I’ve had lots of pets and lots of pups but none of them were well trained to sit, shake, stay. They kind of did it when the mood struck. Someday I would like to have a dog again. But for now, we love our kitties very much.
    Really enjoyed reading this. I had no idea there was so much involved in adopting. Thank you for giving Buddy such a wonderful life going forward.

    1. Thank you Leslie. We feel like we hit the jackpot with Buddy, especially considering we agreed to adopt him without having met in person–only virtually. We have definitely bonded though. It was truly upsetting to see his dismay at his family leaving without him and then when he was so nervous the first day. He will have a good stable life from here on out though. He does seem very smart, and I work with him a little every day, so the consistency helps. My husband had two cats when we first married. They were both older and weren’t around for too long after I was in their lives. We haven’t had a cat since then, but I know my mother and my sisters loved love(d) their cats very much. There is something about pets that is so soothing and joyful. I used to think I didn’t want the responsibility or the mess, but I was wrong. Once I fell in love with Charlie, there was no turning back.

  9. Buddy is beautiful. I love that the rescue organization does site visits to ensure safety. Buddy is one lucky boy to find a forever home with you. Enjoy!

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