Renegade came to us in 2015 as a 4-6 month old pup. She was on the urgent list at the Kansas City shelter:
"***Rescue Only - Pup was brought to the shelter by animal control. It appears that she has had no previous human socialization and is very defensive when staff attempts to interact with her."
Most ferals you work with will shut down, and curl up, and not really think about biting the thing scaring them. Renegade was different (hence her name). She will defend herself and will try to scare strangers away before they ever get near her.
She eventually bonded to us and we could handle her and pet her and she'd curl up in a ball and allow the touching without defending herself. She'd wag her tail for us, and get excited to see us but then if you reached for her she'd run to her safe spot (an open wire crate) and curl up.
With time, patience, and consistency she will now just cower down for petting, not run away.
She WANTS the petting. She's so happy with us, dances around wagging her tail, gives us little kisses, loves treats, but when you reach for her she'll cower down and wait for the petting. The feral dog in her. With strangers, she acts like she's a guard dog and tries to scare them away...but with treats, time, and love she'll warm up to you.
Renegade loves it here, she's safe here, but if a skilled, special person was interested in her...she is available for adoption. In the wrong home Renegade would bite someone. So we will be thorough in our screening of potential homes. Because of her trust/fear issues the potential adopter would need to come to our property to meet her 2-3 times a week for 3-6 weeks in a row to build a bond with her.
Socially Imperfect...but still worth it. Renegade is a happy dog, who loves life, loves to play with other dogs, and deserves to live. She's a perfect example of why we do what we do. Just because she's not a 'normal' dog doesn't mean she doesn't deserve to live.
Check out this video of her playing: https://www.facebook.com/AutumnAcres/posts/3285192524848339
Renegade doesn't have a sponsor. Want to help provide toys, treats, and routine medical care for her? Become her sponsor! $50 a month is all we need to help provide for her.
