Shelter Stories

Girl

For most of her life, she languished on a horse farm in Plant City. She was fed on a regular basis but that was about the extent of her care, as she ran free on the large farm. Over the years, she gave birth to at least two litters of puppies. She was positive with heartworms. She was known simply as "Girl."

Girl neither sought out companionship, nor did she put much trust or faith in the humans that also roamed the farm. Then she met Linda. Linda lived down the street, and would visit the horses on a regular basis. She fell in love with Girl, as they both suffered from the same loneliness.

One day Linda took her home. She had Girl successfully treated for the heartworms and when she was healthy enough, had Girl spayed. They were inseparable until a day in March, when Linda became ill while on an outing with Girl. Linda was taken to the hospital and Girl to Hillsborough County Animal Services.

A nurse at the hospital where Linda was admitted heard the story and retrieved Girl from Animal Services so Linda could get her beloved dog back once she was home. However, Linda ended up spending more time than originally thought in the hospital and Girl, always on lookout for her Mom, escaped by breaking through a wooden fence. Girl was gone and Linda was heartbroken.

A month later, a black, shaggy, older dog showed up at the Hillsborough County School Board complex, and took refuge under one of the portable module units. The dog was afraid and once again showed the same distrust of humans as she had in the past. It took two months of providing her with food, water and kind words before any of the staff could approach her. Then at the end of June, Hillsborough County Animal Services was called. Once again, Girl was taken away.

The staff members who had cared for her called Suncoast Animal League and asked the League to intervene on Girl's behalf. On July 10th, 2009, Girl was brought to Suncoast Animal League, nearly four months after Linda and Girl were separated. The first thing League staff and volunteers noticed about Girl was her aloof attitude and her desire to always be "somewhere else." She always seemed to be looking for something.

After months of work and attention, Girl started to come around. She would wag her tail and look forward to the attention she was given. The volunteers especially loved her and would sometimes foster her in their homes, but she was always restless. There was always something on her mind.

Three days before Christmas 2009, a Craig's List posting showed an old, cloudy picture of a black mix-breed dog that had been lost in Plant City. After several calls, we were able to speak with Linda. She told us she had not given up hope of finding Girl, and had made one last desperate attempt to find her lost dog.

It took several weeks to confirm Linda's health was well enough to take the 10-year-old, large dog home. After Linda's granddaughter, Vanessa became aware of the situation, she agreed to take responsibility of the dog. Girl was going home.

On February 8, 2010, Linda and Vanessa drove from Plant City to the League's office in Palm Harbor. None of us knew what to expect while we waited for the two ladies to arrive. Would the normally aloof Girl respond to Linda? Would she even recognize her? No one knew for sure.

When Girl walked into the office and laid eyes upon Linda, the mostly unemotional dog started whining and crying, and jumped into her long, lost owner's lap. That is when the impact of the situation hit everyone in the room, and that is when we all realized that Girl had found her "somewhere else."

Before long, the dog, the grandmother and the granddaughter walked to the car. Without hesitation, Girl happily jumped into the back seat and sat next to Linda, ending her 220 day stay at Suncoast Animal League. Girl is now home.

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