A shelter dog at risk of being euthanized had the sweetest of reactions to the woman who came to her rescue.
Ruby the dog had struggled to drum up much in the way of adoption interest since arriving at Lancaster Park Care Center in Los Angeles, where she was originally named Camille.
“She was found as a stray with her bonded sister Gracie,” Anna James, a musician who also works for a nonprofit focused on the rescue and rehoming of dogs like Ruby, told Newsweek.
Ruby life’s before her rescue remains a mystery but James suspects something bad happened in the past. “She’s very scared of men and seems to favor women,” James said.
Anna James and her foster dog Ruby.
TikTok/annaxjames
Whatever the truth, James believes Ruby’s fearfulness in the shelter, coupled with her breed, proved to be a significant obstacle to her getting adopted. “Ruby and Gracie were both being overlooked because they were pit mixes which is a very common issue,” she said.
In 2021, a study published in the journal Animals sought to identify the most common characteristics of long-term shelter dogs. Using data from dogs who had spent over a year in a no-kill shelter, researchers concluded the long-term shelter dogs were more often of older age, male, of large size, neutered, and considered a “dangerous breed.”
Though there are plenty who would contest the classification, there are many others who would categorize pit mixes as “dangerous.” Pit bulls are not an officially recognized breed, but it carries a certain connotation, with research suggesting the label of “pit bull” has led to many dogs staying in the shelter longer.
James is among those who rejects the idea of pit mixes being “dangerous,” along with some of the other myths associated with them. In fact, she already had two pit mixes when she heard about Ruby and Gracie.
“Pits are really amazing, affectionate, and sweet dogs,” she said. “They get a bad rep because the ones who attack have horrible owners, and usually in those cases, they’re trained to attack.”
Many dogs face a limited window of time in which to find a new home. The ASPCA estimates that in 2024 alone, 334,000 dogs were euthanized in the U.S. Numerous facilities face a constant stream of new dogs coming in, and the sad reality is that in many cases those canines either experiencing difficulties, or are unlikely to be adopted, are euthanized.
According to James, time was running out for Ruby. “I saw on a social media post that she was about 24 hours away from euthanasia so I knew I had to get up early the next morning and drive 90 minutes to save her,” she said.
Newsweek reached out to the Lancaster Park Care Center for comment on multiple occasions on Camille/Ruby and Gracie’s situation, and to ascertain how close they actually came to being euthanized.
James hadn’t originally intended on rescuing Ruby. “I went to get Gracie. I was so torn about not being able to take both dogs but I figured one was better than none,” she said. “However when I got there, I saw them both, called my boyfriend crying, and he told me to grab them both and we’ll figure it out later.”
Thankfully, in the end, things worked out. “Luckily, a man was there interested in Gracie, so I said ‘Great! You take Gracie, I’ll take Camille (now Ruby),'” James said.
James originally took Ruby in as a foster. “I just wanted to give her a second chance because no one else was vouching for her,” she said. But within an hour of her being with her, it was clear that Ruby was attached.
A video posted to James’s TikTok, @annaxjames, at the end of last month has already amassed more than 150,000 views. It shows how her new rescue pup immediately took to her, sticking to her like “velcro.”
It’s clear Ruby was full of appreciation for her new human friend and, having been given a chance at happiness, did not want to let go of it. The good news is that the feeling appears to be mutual. “She’s actually a foster, but if she plays her cards right, she might be a foster fail,” James said. “We already love her so much.”
Ruby is already defying her “dangerous breed” tag too with the way she interacts with James’s two other dogs. “I brought her home to my other pit mix and there’s been no aggression between either of them,” she said. “But when they don’t feel threatened, and they’re shown love and nurturing, they’re amazing dogs.”
While there is still much to decide about where Ruby ends up, her future is looking a whole lot brighter than it did just a couple of days ago.
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