If Only She Knew....

Cutie pie Ciera does not get much time on the blog; I attribute it to the fact that she is such a good girl! She has been with us for around three months & during that time, she has only had one inquiry. I received an email from STAR that a potential adopter would like to meet 3 of the "pittie" girls listed on STAR's Petfinder & Ciera was one of them! So the next day, after some goodbye kisses from the Boy, Ciera & I hop in the car with all of her paperwork. We were just SO sure that this beautiful sweet girl was on her way to meet her new family! The meeting spot is about 45 miles down the interstate; when we were almost there, we stopped at a  rest area & took a long walk around the grounds. Ciera was in a good mood & seemed happy to be out and about. We got to the meeting spot a few minutes early & decided to work on walking & sitting. She did great! Sometimes she pulls a little, but today she was loose leash walking & even sitting without the offer of a treat! Things were going great. The potential adopters arrived (mother & two teenage sons) & I thought to myself that Ciera would be in heaven with 2 TEENAGE BOYS to love on! So we walk over to them & talk for a few minutes & I find out that they have a 105 pound lab & I then think to myself 2 TEENAGE BOYS & an ACTIVE LAB to play with????!!! Just about that time I hear a noise, a very low grumbly noise........Ciera is growling at them!!!!!!!!!!! AND SHE WILL NOT STOP!!!! Let me explain a little; Ciera has been known to growl when first meeting people just until she gets a good smell of them & only when at our house. She has never growled at anyone at the vets office (they loved her) & never growled at anyone while out on walks or at the lake.I had also told the potential adopters this information; no surprises wanted :) BUT there she was shaking & growling even when offered treats by the boys; at no point did she act aggressive. She was only letting everyone know that she was uncomfortable. The whole exchange probably was less than 5 minutes :( Everyone was sitting on the ground & she did crawl over to one of the boys for a petting, but then it was like she suddenly remembered that she was uncomfortable & crawled back away from him. Once I realized that she was not doing her " I am going to growl until I get a good smell" routine, I walked her away. We watched as the family got to meet the two other fosters,Greta & Coconut. Oh what sweet loving girls! Once back in the car, Ciera slept the entire way home; got out of the car; ran in the house & jumped in the Boys' lap!

We later found out that the family's Lab did not take to Greta or Coconut, but they have not given up on finding a new member for their family. Oh if only she knew what could have been...... I am sad for Ciera that she will continue to wait for her family & also sad that the family did not get to see what a truly sweet girl she is! We are going to get her enrolled in obedience class to see if hopefully that will give her more confidence. If anyone has advice, it would be greatly appreciated! To the family who made the long drive to meet the pups, thank you for considering these girls & hoping that you find the right fit for Opie:)

Have a great weekend!


The Mrs.