Perhaps that dog in the kennel is one of the most lovable, devoted and precious dogs a family will ever know. 
That dog has no idea what it did wrong, why it’s here, or what’s going to happen to it. It’s scared… and it’s waiting for you to come back for it. But you’re not coming back, and here he sits every day while countless people walk by, not even giving him a chance because he’s older, and everyone wants the young ones and the puppies. Guess what? The younger ones and puppies all grow up and they’re going to get old, too!
So many dogs are overlooked every single day. They aren’t even given a chance to meet you because you walk by them. You see an old dog, you see a certain breed, you see them barking and jumping up or maybe you see them just laying on their beds doing nothing. You just keep walking past them. Do you think any of those dogs are judging you, like you’re judging them as you walk by their kennels? The dog isn’t in there thinking, “Hmmmm, that one’s too old to play with me, that one’s dirty, that one smells funny, that one looks mean, that one has black hair, so just walk on by me please, because I’m not interested in you.” Reality check: they don’t care what you do for a living, what kind of car you drive, how big your house is, what you look like, what you’re wearing or any of that. They only care that they have a safe home and a family that loves them. They only want to give you their unconditional love for the rest of their lives, to be beside you through good and bad times and to always make things better.
I don’t think you really understand what you might be walking past when you walk by their kennels, not even stopping to take a look. Perhaps that dog in the kennel you just walked by is one of the most lovable, devoted and precious dogs you’ll ever know. Take Gina, for example: she’s an 11-year-old American Pit Bull mix who’s been here since August of 2021, except for the 28 days she was adopted and returned for being dog reactive. Her original owners had her for 10 years but had to surrender her because they were moving! (Don’t even get me started!) She has awful kennel presence because she either just lays there against the door so you can’t really see her or she’s barking and jumping up. So, people just walk by and don’t even ask about her. Which is a mistake, because she’s the most lovable, precious, devoted, loyal and playful dog. She’s been hanging out with us in the Admin Building every day, following us around, lying in one of her three beds, munching on treats, coming to us for some loving and to have her back scratched. (She loves it and does this cute little thing with her back legs while we scratch. If you come meet her, you’ll see it.) We take her out in the bark park and play with her and her favorite things, tennis balls! There’s no such thing as too many being thrown for that girl because she’ll fetch them all for you. IF she was just given a chance by everyone who’s walking by her kennel and only seeing an 11-year-old Pit Bull, they would see the REAL Gina and fall in love with her just like we have. She’s playful yet chill, a little goofy, she likes learning new things and has even learned “shake” while hanging out with us. She is so full of love and just wants someone to take her to her fur-ever home so she can be your best friend and chill with you! rust me, we’d take her home in a heartbeat if we both didn’t already have our own menagerie of furry family members at our homes.
What’s the whole point of this article? Well, there are a couple of things. First, I’ll just go with the old cliché of “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Second, you really don’t know what the story is on these animals here waiting for a home. Third, dogs never wake up one day and decide they don’t love you or want you anymore. FBN
By Loree Walden
Loree Walden is the marketing manager at Yavapai Humane Society.
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