We believe that Ducky “rescued” us. When we first saw Ducky’s picture on Craigslist, we thought “How cute is he!” At the time, we were a complete household: Dad, Mom, kid, two cats and one dog. We brought all of our animals home because they were all labeled as “unwanted”.
Then, a few days later, our oldest cat travelled across the Rainbow Bridge. We were heartbroken. A few weeks later, looking at all the cute pictures of the animals on Craigslist again, there was Ducky! We thought, how could he still be looking for a home, being as cute as he is? Not sure that we were ready to bring in another animal into our home so soon after our loss, we wavered back and forth. Then, I realized that we had all this extra love after our loss. So, I sent Liz a short e-mail about us and if we were a home that Ducky might be a good fit for.
We set up a meet and greet with Ducky and our dog, Zuki. After spending time with Liz and Ducky, she told me how he was also considered “unwanted”, as he was so painfully shy. Many inquiries about him, but people wanted more of an outgoing dog, ready to go, versus a really shy dog that need time and patience. At that moment, I knew that Ducky was the one that was going to help us find a place for all of our extra love.
The first night we had him, he hid under all of our furniture and wouldn’t eat. It took us over 20 minutes to put a leash on him for a walk, and could only get him to eat if we tossed his kibble to him from across the room. However, with lots of patience and giving him his space and time, he came to us after a few days. He now sleeps with us, travels with us, plays freely, and is forever attached to Zuki, his new big sis. He loves to jump her in
the morning when she is just getting up. They are now called “Double Trouble”.
Zuki, being a Jack Russell, is so social and outgoing, that Ducky has followed suit. He is so confident now, and with the help of his daycare, Planet Pooch, he runs up to people to be petted, lets them pick him up, and loves to play with the other dogs at the daycare. Planet Pooch helped him overcome his shyness by introducing him slowly to other dogs, and helping him to gain his confidence with humans. Instead of coaxing him to daycare,
he now drags me into the room!
Thanks to Rocket Dog Rescue for saving us, by bringing our household back to complete again, and allowing Ducky to give us a chance to help him.
Joana, Dave, Kellsie, and most of all, Zuki