This is our new foster through Pet Haven, Penny. She is a 13 year old pit bull who has a history of seizures (although on e has not been witnessed in a while). She was surrendered by her owners to  Red Lake Rosies, an animal rescue in Red Lake Indian Reservation in northwestern Minnesota (about 5 hours away from the Twin Cities).

Penny is a sweet, quiet dog who is currently very depressed. Depression isn’t as common as you think it would be with rescue dogs, but it (at least from our small sample size) seems to be more prevalent with older, owner surrender dogs. Penny now reminds me very much of Georgie when we first brought her home: quiet, not really seeking out human interaction, listless, not super food motivated, and doesn’t really even seem to take notice of the other animals.I don’t doubt that she will get there and we will help her, but right now she doesn’t feel confident or stable.

One of the only things that Penny seems interested in are cars. She will sit and watch traffic and will walk toward the road if given a choice which way she wants to go.

Penny currently does a lot of standing around and isn’t really feeling secure or comfortable in our house yet. Below is an example of how Penny stands around the house: Not really focused on anything, tail stick straight down, and seemingly uninterested.

You can pick Penny up in this position and put her on the couch. She will stand in this exact same position until you help settle her in (I have made her my unwilling little spoon a few times). It is heartbreaking and I don’t doubt that she is very confused and unsure.

Even though Penny has briefly met Frankie and Georgie, we are not completely integrating them yet. One of the only times Penny has changed from her standard standing position is when the dogs get a little close, then she sloooowly just tucks her tail.Her facial expression stays the same but we are going off of the body language we can see and she is telling us she is uncomfortable.

Breanne and I will help her feel safe by giving her plenty of space but also offering her opportunities to get affection. She has some health things that need to get figured out (most urgently a few teeth with terrible fractures) and then we will help her to lose some  weight slowly so that it doesn’t exacerbate her arthritis (she currently walks with a small limp).

Although she is taking her time adjusting, it is obvious that she was well loved in her previous home. We don’t know why it became necessary for her previous owners to re-home her, but we are glad that they chose rescue. We will take care of her and help her become comfortable.

Welcome, Penny!