During Covid I was one of those people who adopted a dog from a rescue group. My 12-year labrador retriever, Bella, had passed over a year before, and I was lonely for the canine companionship I had for most of my life. My little boy Petey had been found by animal control roaming the crowded streets of a large city. He contracted Bordetella from the animal shelter he was placed in, and a rescue group took him in to be fostered in a home and treated for the ailment medicinally. I saw his sweet little face in a picture on their website. He was in a fenced-in area and had his paws perched on top of the fence trying to get out, his sad eyes seeming to beg, “please choose me.” I did.

Petey came home with me on a cold January morning. He jumped right in the car and became my co-pilot from the back seat with his front paws perched on the console. He wasn’t afraid or fearful, but instead seemed confident in somehow knowing he was going home to a place he’d never been before. It took Petey awhile to overcome his aggressive fear of cars and his pensiveness bordering on attack mode towards other dogs while walking. I trained him with treats and two simple words, “it’s ok.” I repeated those words over and over. With each car, with each dog. Soft and soothing, “it’s ok.” It took him awhile, but eventually I didn’t have to use an abundance of treats – all I had to do is repeat those two words softly to calm him and his aggressiveness. ”It’s ok. It’s ok.” He would look up at me with his little brown eyes, somehow understanding that he didn’t have to fear these things anymore.

Petey’s been with me now for three years. His once aggressive fear of cars has disappeared. His pensiveness and attack mode towards other dogs while walking in the park has subsided. He doesn’t seem bothered by them at all, even when they lurch towards him.

He’s a pleasant little fellow who gives me a reason to carry on, so to speak. He is totally at home and rules the roost, much to my cat’s chagrin. The one thing he has just started mastering is coexisting with her. But with other creatures like squirrels, birds and flying insects, its all chase and conquer.

Don’t get me wrong. It took a lot of time and effort on my part. It wasn’t overnight. But now he continues to amaze me in the fact of how far he’s come from that scared, confused and sick little fellow to a confident, happy, rule the roost, mischief maker. It’s the best decision ever made.