Stray Dog Learns to Trust People
Sassy was born as a stray in South Carolina, giving her a tough, challenging start to life. Living on the streets, Sassy had had little human interaction and so she missed learning that people can be trustworthy and kind. Fortunately one of our rescue partners managed to get this sweet girl to safety and help her make the journey up to MA in search of a fresh start and a new loving home.
Once she arrived at Baypath, Sassy needed a safe, quiet place to decompress with consistent, positive reinforcement training to help her along in the world. The team at Baypath Humane quickly sprung into action and found her a foster home — a place where we could show Sassy to trust, and for us learn more about this special girl.
She had every reason to be fearful of the world around her, but with patience, empathy and love she quickly blossomed in her foster home, showing herself to be a wonderful, wiggly puppy at heart.
Sassy started basic obedience classes, courtesy of Life is Dog, to help build her confidence. With positive reinforcement training, Sassy showed huge progress in such a short space of time. “As a foster family, it was magical to see the transformation in her demeanor, to see her figure out that the world wasn’t such a scary place,” said Sassy’s foster mom, Lizzie. “Sassy hugely benefited from the extra dedication and care of a foster home, and she thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to get out and explore with her foster brother! Sassy loved trips to the beach, splashing in the ocean and digging in the sand. We were able to see true potential of this girl in a foster home — not just a scared, shutdown pup at a shelter.”
During her time in foster, Baypath’s vet found that Sassy had some hip issues. After a medical examination, it was recommended that Sassy have surgery to help maintain her quality of life. She underwent orthopedic surgery at Tufts Veterinary Hospital and then returned to her foster home to recover. Sassy needed regular physical therapy and a stretching regime to help regain her strength post-surgery.
Sassy’s time in foster also gave us invaluable information about Sassy’s personality and armed us with all the information we needed to find the perfect home for her. Her foster family were able to discuss their insights about Sassy extensively, and found the perfect match for this girl. Sassy’s new owners were given advice and assistance to help her transition into her new home.
Taking on a dog like Sassy is a journey, with everyone learning and growing along the way. Though Sassy was shy at first, she has an incredibly affectionate side and truly has given her heart to her new family! They shared this update about her progress: “Sassy has been a complete gem since she joined our family. She is getting along much faster than I anticipated, so all signs are positive. We couldn’t be happier to have Sassy with us! She is incredibly smart and seems to always be in the same room around us. We can’t stop talking about how her personality just seems to fit parallel with ours. It’s heartwarming.”
