Mushy

We haven’t introduced you to Mushy yet, but he is the overlooked/turned away-by-other-rescues or euthanized-for-failing-outdated-temperament-tests-in-shelters type of little dog we take in all the time to give not just a second chance, but their only chance. Their last chance. We have been working with him behind the scenes to make friends with him for a couple weeks, and it finally paid off. The first week was rough, not going to lie. He screamed and bared all his teeth when approached. He peed and pooped on the vet in terror while his head was wrapped in a towel to safely get shots into him. He’s just not the love at first sight type at all. But we just left him alone and offered him treats every day until one day we could finally pet him. And he realized he liked it. And then he asked to be picked up. And liked it. And then he even liked being brushed and groomed. Mushy actually lived up to his name and showed how mushy and cuddly he could be! He’s never going to be a happy go lucky, wagging his tail at strangers, walking the kids to the bus stop and letting people pet him kind of dog like a goofy happy pit bull or golden retriever. And that’s ok. He’s not for everyone. He’s a true one-woman dog and a master cuddler with his chosen person once you have worked to earn his trust. Once he loves you, his world revolves around you, and he will be the most trustworthy and reliable little furry person in your life. His second more comprehensive text exam once he bonded to us went much better, and he even wagged his tail and took some treats from the vet! So there is definitely hope for him making new friends, it just takes time and letting him make the decisions. Mushy LOVES other dogs- he follows and cuddles with them and they seem to give him more courage. He’s been used to living in a “pack” and would love to live in a multi dog home again where the dogs far outnumber the humans. He’s about 5 years old, under 15lbs, in good shape medically, neutered and updated on shots. For dogs like Mushy, the greatest gift we can give them is the gift of time and space to warm up to us on their terms, and let them live as happy and stress-free as possible in foster as we get to know them. Once they show us they have the potential to be happy, they stay with us as long as needed to find the right home, be it a week, a month, or a year, or more. We won’t push dogs like Mushy into an overwhelming situation or the wrong home environment just to get him out, but we would love to find him the right home soon so we have space to help the next misunderstood little guy like him. Email us at [email protected] if you are interested in adopting Mushy or any of his little friends in Northern NJ. And please share his story to help him in his search for his perfect person. Since COVID-19, we are no longer holding our Sunday adoption events until further notice, but we are scheduling meet and greet appointments with a specific dog or dogs at our meeting spots in Northern NJ. To streamline adoptions, all communication before, during, and after the adoption process is done through email only: we have limited volunteers able to return phone calls. Submit an application from our website www.secondchance.petfinder.com to speed up the adoption process and email any questions to us at [email protected]. Please check your email regularly for next steps. All our dogs reside in foster care in Northern NJ until adoption and we do not have a central shelter location. We are a small all-volunteer organization focused on rescuing local dogs from area shelters, as well as accepting some surrenders and puppy mill rescues.