As we get older, we realize that not everything works out like we thought it would in life. Sometimes relationships don’t pan out, a job isn’t a good fit, or a person is just better off not being in your life! For one family, that sad reality came to pass when they adopted a new puppy.
Adopting a dog can be a bit of a gamble if you don’t know what you are getting into.
While it isn’t always the case, adopting a shelter dog doesn’t always work out as you planned. For whatever reason, the dog you fell in love with at the shelter just isn’t a great fit for the family or home. Maybe you have a pool that the dog just can’t seem to resist, or a surprise baby complicates things financially.
Last September a family decided to adopt one particular puppy named Rhino Lightning.
Rhino was a 3-year-old pup from the Humane Society of Utah. As a brindle boxer mix, he was all energy and loved to be around humans. Right after the adoption, things seemed to be going well! Rhino was his same happy self and was as rambunctious as ever.
When that energy didn’t dissipate, however, the family grew concerned.
After a few months of living with him, the family made the decision to bring Rhino back to the shelter. It wasn’t an easy one, but they made the call anyway.
“They felt that he was a little too rambunctious with their small children,” Deann Shepherd, director of marketing and communications for the Humane Society of Utah, told The Dodo. “Sometimes a family is just not in a position to provide the care the animal needs.”
It was an emotional affair and it wasn’t an easy thing for the family.
The ordeal finished with the family handing a little spiral-bound notebook to the shelter and told them it was from their daughter. The little girl had written in the notebook and left some special notes for the family that decided to take Rhino home!
When the staff opened the notebook, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.
“Hi, if you are reading this, you must own Rhino now,” the little girl wrote in the notebook. “He was my puppy. I really hope he is in a good environment. I really miss him. I wish he knew that he was a pretty puppy.”
That was just the introduction! She also included some instructions on how to best take care of Rhino how he needed it.
“Rhino is a really intelligent puppy,” she wrote. “He is a very amazing puppy. Rhino needs lots of attention. He loves people.
She explained that they needed to take him on three runs a day, a bath once a month, and give him lots of attention. She clearly loved him dearly.
The one condition that the girl had was to not change his name.
“His full name is Rhino Lightning, then your last name,” the girl wrote. “Please don’t rename him.”
When Rhino officially went back up for adoption, the new family promised to abide by the rules! They took the notebook home and promised to take him on runs and love him, just like she did.
Check out a video of Rhino below!
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