Sunny is still waiting for the perfect family to call her own.
Why have adopting families returned Sunny to the Newtown shelter - twice? Why has this beautiful, loving, four-year old Pit/hound mix failed to meet the expectations of these two families?
Sunny has a pretty serious anxiety syndrome - not surprising in a short life filled with trauma.
Found as a stray in Newtown and brought to the Newtown shelter several years ago, it was soon apparent that Sunny had recently given birth. Her puppies were never found.
Was she neglected? Was she abused? How long was she on the street rummaging for food and shelter for herself and her puppies? We just don’t know. There is no history for this girl.
The good news is that Sunny is SUCH a great dog she now has a fan club of dedicated animal-lovers ready to give her every chance to find the perfect, forever home. Together with the shelter staff, local trainers and experienced animal caregivers, a long-range plan was developed for Sunny to help her achieve her potential.
The first step was to find an appropriate foster home and move Sunny out of the artificial environment of the shelter. She needed to experience the warmth and safety of a loving home and family – perhaps for the first time. One of the shelter employees had fallen in love with Sunny and offered to foster her in her home for a limited period of time.
Local rescue organization Canine Advocates of Newtown, Inc., then stepped up and offered to pay for Sunny’s obedience classes and in-home behavior modification. With the foster family working daily to build Sunny’ confidence and self-esteem, they were able to extend the amount of time Sunny could be safely left alone. The trainer frequently visited with Sunny in the foster home to work with the family, and Sunny, to further develop family-oriented skills and to evaluate Sunny’s progress.
Sunny successfully completed a Level One Class at a local training center.
Yes, Sunny has come a long way over the last year, but there’s still more for Sunny to work on to be the best canine companion she can be.
A prospective adopter must:
1- be willing to spend the time with Sunny to continue reinforcing the “good” behaviors developed over the last few months,
2- have prior experience with dogs, especially dogs with behavior issues,
3- be home most of the time – preferably, a person who works from home,
4- have no other pets or children,
5- live where Sunny can be confined in an area large enough for her to run and exercise, preferbaly without close neighbors and pets to distract her,
6- be willing to continue Sunny on her current medications prescribed to reduce her anxiety levels,
7- be willing to be screened for the adoption by the shelter staff and Sunny’s current trainers,
8- be willing to continue Sunny’s training and behavior modification programs (some financial assistance will be available through Canine Advocates of Newtown, Inc. ),
9- and, work with Sunny’s foster Mom to help Sunny adjust and transition into her new home.
Sunny really needs your help NOW. Without a new family, Sunny will soon have to return to the shelter where she will, no doubt, regress to her former sorrowful state.
She’s waited much too long for the right family for her forever home. Let’s make the rest of this girl’s life as “sunny” as her name.
You can meet Sunny at the Brian J. Silverlieb Animal Care and Control Center located on Old Farm Road, Newtown, CT. (203) 426-6900.