Please adopt Hope (Staffy).

Meet Hope… our gorgeous, young staffy cross!  This girl has been through the wars and ended up as an amputee.  But having 3 legs doesn’t slow her down and she is one of the bravest, strongest dogs we know! Despite all she’s been through, she still has the biggest staffy smile that melts our hearts every time we see it, and she has so much love to give.

Hope is super smart and loves to learn new things. Her favourite activity is swimming!  She goes swimming once a week in a special doggy hydrotherapy pool and she is the speediest swimmer on 3 legs we have ever seen.  Going swimming is the highlight of her week and it has allowed her to meet new people, away from the sanctuary in a controlled environment,  This in turn has helped to expand her friendship bubble and improve her reactivity.  On top of this, it has helped to teach her some self control and she can now have fun playing with toys in the pool without getting over the top.  She has so much fun swimming and it has helped to build up her muscles and adapt to life on 3 legs.  It is crucial that she is kept strong and healthy so that she can support herself.

Hope will need a home where someone/people can give her sensible exercise so she doesn’t overdo it. Shorter, more frequent walks are ideal, as long walks put a lot of strain on her body.  Therefore her new owners will need to be understanding of this and be prepared to provide her with lots of mental stimulation to keep her big brain busy!

Hope can be very reactive towards people she doesn’t know, and dogs, so has to wear her muzzle when out and about.  This is something we have been working really hard on with her and she has made so many friends here at the sanctuary, with the help of squeezy cheese.  She LOVES squeezy cheese!  She now looks at us for reassurance when she’s feeling unsure or worried about someone before reacting.  This is amazing progress.  And if she does react, she can now disengage and calm down quickly.

However, Hope will need a home in a quiet environment where she doesn’t have to see many people, whilst her new owners work on this with her.  Hope is looking for an experienced, quiet, adult only home with someone who is willing to devote a lot of time to continue her rehabilitation and help her adapt to life in a home.  Despite being reactive to people she doesn’t know, Hope has formed strong bonds with some of the staff here at Holly Hedge.  Once she trusts and feels safe with someone, she is very loving and affectionate, loving a cuddle on the sofa.  We feel that once settled into a home, she’d be the perfect ‘Netflix and chill’ companion.

Hope can have big feelings about a lot of things which can lead to her becoming overwhelmed/over stimulated.  This is shown by her jumping up and grabbing (usually items of clothing) and refusing to let go.  However, she is muzzle trained and loves wearing her muzzle, which has made her safe to work with and allowed us to slowly introduce her to things that she finds overwhelming, and she is learning that there are better ways to control her emotions and that the world isn’t such a scary place after all!

The progress that this girl has made whilst she has been with us is massive and we are so very proud of her, but we would love for her to find a home of her own now where someone can continue to help her.

To apply for Hope, please email  [email protected]  stating your current situation & working hours and reasons for wanting to adopt her.  Please note, we can only accept applications that match her needs.  Therefore, also consider if your work hours and situation will still be suitable on a long term basis.  Thank you.

See our other dogs here.