Dog adopted as puppy returned a year later through “no fault of his own”

A shelter dog who was adopted as a puppy only to be returned due to unforeseen circumstances a year later has been given a second chance at life.

Koda’s story first came to light when Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue, the facility where he resided at in Bradenton, Florida, shared a video explaining how he had been returned “through no fault of his own.”

Life has rarely been easy for Koda. Lacy Landers, the marketing manager at Nate’s, told Newsweek of how close this sweet dog came to death as a puppy.

“Koda first came into our care as a puppy from an overwhelmed shelter in Georgia who asked us for help,” she said. “We took in a number of dogs, including Koda, who would have otherwise been euthanized for space.”

It had looked like Koda was all set for a happy life in a new forever home. He was adopted quickly and the shelter said goodbye and good luck, not expecting what would happen next.

Then again, Koda’s family at the time could not have predicted what would happen to them either and the heartbreaking decision they were forced to make regarding Koda’s future.

Landers said: “Koda was adopted as a puppy and happy in a home until the recent hurricanes devastated his family and left them to make the tough decision due to financial burdens and major life changes.”

Sadly, Koda was far from an outlier at the time with many dogs entering the shelter as a result of the destruction witnessed across the state.

“Following the storms, we received an overwhelming amount of surrender applications from families whose homes were damaged, forced to move,” Landers said.

At the same time, the shelter was continuing to take in dogs from other backgrounds. “We also see surrenders on the daily for all kinds of reasons including poor expectations, lack of training, financial burdens, and more,” Landers said.

The first few days in a shelter can be a stressful experience for a dog. In a 2006 study from the journal Physiology and Behavior researchers found dogs living in shelters had three times the level of the stress hormone cortisol in their system during the first three days after arrival than normal household dogs.

Koda struggled with the adjustment, like many dogs in his position do, and that made it difficult for her to attract much in the way of adoption interest.

“After being returned to the shelter, Koda did not show well to adopters, as many dogs do not,” Landers said.

“Being in a kennel more hours of the day than not, dogs like Koda get very excited by each person walking by, leading to loud barking and jumping that can sometimes deter potential adopters, especially when the dog is already full grown.”

However, once Koda was out of the kennel and free to walk and play, Landers noted she “did great and loved meeting anyone.”

“This is the sad truth of many dogs at the shelters who get overlooked due to their behavior in the kennel,” she said.

But while Koda may have struggled to find a forever home then, the video of his story, coupled with the continued efforts of everyone at Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue did eventually yield results.

“Koda was adopted this past Friday to a family where he will be the only dog, receiving all the love and attention with plenty of room to run and play in his very own yard,” Landers said.

After so many twists and turns in his young life, the hope now is that Koda can settle down and become the family dog he was born to be.

This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.