Visiting Shayna: A Foster Mom’s Reward

I’ve been personally involved with the lives of many rescued Shiba Inus since founding NYC Shiba Rescue two years ago and I’ve felt varying amounts of affection for each and every one of them. Every dog is an individual (just like people) and there’s almost always something lovable about each of them (maybe not so much like people). I believe there are only a few dogs in our lifetimes that truly steal our hearts though. Some people call them "heart dogs." For me, one of those few dogs was a foster – never meant to be a permanent addition to my life – but she definitely became a permanent addition to my heart.

A lot of you probably remember when I said goodbye to Shayna. It tore my heart out when I drove away from her on adoption day and I could see the confused look on her face. (It didn’t help that Snick was also confused that we left her behind.) That was 16 months ago and I still think of her often. The photos and email updates I’ve received from her family have helped enormously. A couple weeks ago though, I got to see for myself how happy she is with her new family. Snickers and I went to visit Shayna for the first time!

Shayna doesn’t really get along with other dogs, so we were a little worried about how she would react to having Snickers in her house. We shouldn’t have worried though. They ran up and KISSED the second they saw each other! 🙂 Then Snick threw down the big play bow but Shayna was busy kissing me then and didn’t notice. I was so happy she remembered us both after so long. (She only lived with us for four months, after all.) When she was done saying hello to me, she tried to get Snickers to play, but by then he was busy checking out the house and greeting all her family members! I was kind of bummed that they didn’t do a big romp around the house like they used to do when they lived together, but they were both happy and that’s really what mattered.

After the initial hellos, we took them for a walk together, which they both thoroughly enjoyed. Then the humans had lunch and the doggies had lamb bones that I brought for the occasion. Shayna pretty much destroyed her bone AND Snick’s, but Snick didn’t seem to mind.

Shayna’s family told me all about her life – where she sleeps, the games she likes to play, the toys she loves. They clearly love her very, VERY much and she loves them right back. She looks GREAT. She’s happy and healthy and as joyful as ever.

Snick and I spent about 2 1/2 hours there and then we headed out on the long drive home. This time, when we drove away, Shayna looked content and happy with her family as we left. I hope we’ll get a chance to visit again sometime, but, if not, I’m satisfied knowing I couldn’t have created a better family for her if I had tried. It’s a perfect match.