A-Z of #Dog Rescue: Easy Street — #AtoZChallenge

Not every rescue is a Via Crucis—and I apologize if I’ve given you that impression so far. It’s the alphabet’s fault. If E came before C, I could've let you wade slow into the world of rescuing, instead of throwing you into the deep end of the impossible catches.

Sometimes rescue just… flows. Sometimes the stars seem to align for the rescuer—and for the dog. 

Please ignore the corny music. I'd suggest turning down the audio, but the rescue talk is worth listening to.

This dog not only puts up zero fight but seems to have been waiting for her rescuers. My favorite scene is at about 1:20, when the human is handing out the chew sticks :D

This dog didn't trust the rescuers—but did allow the girl who'd been feeding her to pick her up with no complaints. Once she was handed off, she showed no signs of aggression or defensiveness. Did her poor health have something to do with her submissiveness? Maybe. It almost seems as if she understood she needed human help.

This one was much more skittish, and he fought the leash a bit—but only for, like, a second. (Did you notice his reaction to having his head touched?) And, even though he was visibly scared, once in the car you can see how he relished human touch. Maybe his advanced age played a role; he was too tired to fight. Or maybe he had memories of human love somewhere in his past. We'll never know.

 ~*~ 

The truth is, though, that rescuing—even of the most difficult dog—isn't the hardest part. Finding a forever home for them is.

I thought about making tomorrow's post, for F, on Finding Fosters & Forever Homes... and then decided against it. This series is about the actual hands-on job of getting a dog off the street and to safety. So, instead, tomorrow I'll talk about the pros and cons of using food to gain a dog's trust. (And I'll wait for May to get the Fosters & Forever Homes post off my chest.)

Thank you so much for visiting. I so appreciate every comment, every bit of feedback, every story and experience you contribute. No one is an island, but rescuers least of all. And you're all wonderful, wonderful people. It's an honor to have you as readers at this blog.