My Sweet Beast
Aug 25
/
Jennifer Thornburg
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As I sit here, watching my sweet beast curled up beside me (always right beside me), my heart swells with gratitude that this amazing soul came into my life. Because he wasn’t the dog I would have chosen.
I worked at a local sanctuary teaching volunteers and resident dogs valuable skills and offering behavioral assistance to the shelter staff. "Uno" came to the shelter while I was there, and I was asked to assess him because he was having a really hard time in the kennel. He had been adopted and returned and was not presenting well for introductions. We created a plan for kennel enrichment and for meeting new people.
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Then Covid hit, the shelter staff was reduced, and we needed to find a home for the dogs housed there. I took "Uno" home to see how he’d do in a house. He never left.
From the moment I put him in my car that fateful day, I knew there was something extraordinary about “Uno.”
His eyes told me about his fear but also showed me that he trusted me. And we both took a leap of faith as he moved into my home with our young child, small-breed puppy, and senior dog. Our intros were slow and careful, and he was a polite guest.
The trial weekend turned into official fostering. When there was interest in him, I could find reasons why he wouldn’t be a good fit. The biggest reason is that I couldn’t imagine him in any home except mine. There’s no such thing as a foster fail, especially when it brings you the dog of your heart.
We renamed him Moon Pie, and we called him Moonie. My family started calling him Moonifer because he is my constant companion. We like to be touching. My arm resting on his haunch or his foot pressed against me.
It’s not always easy. He’s a big dog with a bigger bark. Introductions to new people are scary for him and always will be, so they must be taken slowly. But once you’re in his circle of trust, he loves BIG.
I had already worked with dogs for many years when I met Moon. But he showed me I had more to learn about trust and patience. I learned to hear his silent whispers, read his specific body language, and take things at Moonie-speed, which is just as slow as it needs to be.
Together, we've created a world he can live in comfortably and safely, where he can be his most authentic and goofy self. He has a rich life full of love, family, friends, and treatos.
From the moment I put him in my car that fateful day, I knew there was something extraordinary about “Uno.”
His eyes told me about his fear but also showed me that he trusted me. And we both took a leap of faith as he moved into my home with our young child, small-breed puppy, and senior dog. Our intros were slow and careful, and he was a polite guest.
The trial weekend turned into official fostering. When there was interest in him, I could find reasons why he wouldn’t be a good fit. The biggest reason is that I couldn’t imagine him in any home except mine. There’s no such thing as a foster fail, especially when it brings you the dog of your heart.
We renamed him Moon Pie, and we called him Moonie. My family started calling him Moonifer because he is my constant companion. We like to be touching. My arm resting on his haunch or his foot pressed against me.
It’s not always easy. He’s a big dog with a bigger bark. Introductions to new people are scary for him and always will be, so they must be taken slowly. But once you’re in his circle of trust, he loves BIG.
I had already worked with dogs for many years when I met Moon. But he showed me I had more to learn about trust and patience. I learned to hear his silent whispers, read his specific body language, and take things at Moonie-speed, which is just as slow as it needs to be.
Together, we've created a world he can live in comfortably and safely, where he can be his most authentic and goofy self. He has a rich life full of love, family, friends, and treatos.
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Moonie’s fears do not define him.
They are merely a part of his story, a part that I accept and embrace wholeheartedly.
He has brought immeasurable joy to my life, and I am forever grateful for the privilege of being his human.
He has brought immeasurable joy to my life, and I am forever grateful for the privilege of being his human.
Over the years, we've worked with several rescues and shelters, and believe their unified mission to improve the lives of animals and humans is beyond value. And that mission is one we love to support. Especially now when rescues and shelters are so overwhelmed. So much in fact, if you present your adoption paperwork from AARF, Forsyth Humane Society, Forsyth County Animal Shelter, Red Dog Farm Animal Rescue Network, Triad Independent Cat Rescue, or another rescue or shelter, and we will gladly discount your first training by 15%.
Let's give your sweet beast the chance they need for their best life!
Everyone deserves a Moon Dog in their life.
Let's give your sweet beast the chance they need for their best life!
Everyone deserves a Moon Dog in their life.
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See the following blogs for more information:
20 Ways Dogs Communicate Stress
Ladder of Stress
10 Ways to Help your Fearful Dog
7 Qualities to Look for in a Dog Trainer
20 Ways Dogs Communicate Stress
Ladder of Stress
10 Ways to Help your Fearful Dog
7 Qualities to Look for in a Dog Trainer
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