What is your greatest fear? Is it spiders? Heights? Now imagine being tethered to it and you can’t get away. Talk about terrifying. That is how I imagine Gardenia felt when I got her out of her kennel today. I was the scariest thing in the world to her and she was connected to me. She fought the leash and did all she could to get away from me. I tried everything I could to calm her down but nothing worked. I felt terrible.

I feel like we often expect a lot out of our pets. We want them all to do exactly as we say, be friendly towards everyone and easily adapt to any environment. But they have fears and anxieties just like we do. I love working with those dogs that need a little extra work and watching them blossom. I love gaining their trust and changing their view of humans. It is sometimes a very long road but we always get there. And when I talk to their new family I get to tell how they started out just like Gardenia but through time, patience and a lot of love they have become the confident and amazing dog of their dreams.