Indy is Safe!

Imagine being alone in a strange place. A place you have never been. There is the never ending sound of barking coming from all around. Strangers walk by and stop, momentarily, to view you. Not knowing if you can trust them, you retreat as far away as possible and join in the stressed chorus of barking. This is where we met Indy. Afraid. Alone. Unsure of his fate. He had been found several days running loose in an industrial park with, what animal control thought, was a sibling. Indy attempted to flee from the animal control officer who eventually had to use a tranquilizer to sedate and catch Indy. He and his "sibling" were taken to the shelter.With no microchip or collar, they were held the mandatory holding time before being made available to the public for adoption. His "sibling" was adopted the first day but there was little interest in Indy. There was most likely a concern of him being so fearful. When we inquired about Indy, the animal control officer expressed the same concern regarding his fearfulness and barking. Without knowing if he was a purebred or not, we had only one photo to go by, and a concern for a behavior that might impair us from finding him a home, we went to the shelter to evaluate Indy. As we approached his kennel, like so many times before, he retreated to the back and began barking. However, he displayed a few subtle hints that let us know we could work with him. We committed to taking him and had to leave a kennel so he could be caught and transported to the car. The shelter didn't want to stress him out any more than necessary. Because Indy showed signs of being extremely fearful, he wasn't walked out of the shelter like most dogs but transported in his crate from the kennel in which he had been staying to inside the car that would transport him. As Indy was transported in a wire crate to the waiting car, his demeanor had already changed from when we first saw him. He didn't bark and he appeared to be more curious of the people that moved the crate into the car. Taking no chances at the shelter fearing Indy might bolt, Indy wouldn't get to take his first freedom steps until he was somewhere less stressful that didn't have so many barking dogs.Indy arrived at his temporary foster home where he was carefully leashed and unloaded from the car never once barking are showing signs of stress he had displayed at the shelter. He was good on a leash, not pulling or panicking, with the exception of one moment when something spooked him and he pulled to the end of the leash. His eyes wide, it took a few minutes of speaking to him before he calmed. When he did calm, he once again was curious as any other dog his age exploring his surroundings.Shelters have limited space and are temporary homes for the animals they take in. The dogs and cats that don't get adopted are put to sleep to make room for the endless arrival of strays and unwanted pets. While Indy had very little chance of being adopted from the shelter by a private party, we feel we can provide him with the attention he needs while we look for him a forever home. Regardless how long it might take.If you would like to help, please consider sharing this story as well as other posts about Indy. We believe that there is a home for every dog that we rescue. It's just finding that home that can be a challenge.[give_form id="31590"]