UPDATE, 12/12/2016:
Thanks to everyone out there who shared sweet Melony’s story, she has now been adopted and is ready to spend the holidays with her new family! Jennifer Buege of Union City, Georgia heard about Melony when a friend in Michigan shared our original post with her.
Buege lives with her 16-year-old son and 4 cats, and although she has never had a dog, she found that she could not get Melony out of her head. She decided to visit the FCAS shelter, planning to look at other senior dogs if Melony had already been rescued.
As fate would have it, Melony was still there! Although she was timid at first, she is coming out of her shell more and more each day. She adores Buege’s son and sleeps in bed with him every night.
Melony has adjusted quite nicely to having 4 feline siblings, but she is convinced they have plans to steal her new toys. To keep her favorite mallard plushie safe from cat thievery, she falls asleep with it clenched in her mouth!
This weekend, Melony went to visit Santa Clause. With a warm place to call home, a family who loves her, and plenty of brand new toys, it’s hard to imagine she had anything left on her Christmas list to ask for!
ORIGINAL POST:
On October 9th a heartbroken senior pooch named Melony arrived at LifeLine Animal Project’s Fulton County Animal Services (FCAS) shelter in Atlanta. Her family cruelly left her behind in their empty apartment when they moved.
This Thanksgiving weekend, Melony was among the hundreds of pets hoping to find a forever home during the shelter’s holiday adoption event.
The event was a huge success with 375 pets finding homes. Every single senior dog was adopted except Melony.
Her friends at LifeLine believe that Melony simply does not “show well” to potential adopters. She has been at the shelter for nearly two months and the stress is getting to her. That, combined with the trauma of having been abandoned by her family, has left her timid and depressed.
When people walk through the shelter she doesn’t even bother coming to the front of her cage to greet them. It’s as if she knows she won’t be chosen and has given up. The saddest part is, the dog these potential adopters see is not the dog that Melony truly is.
She is very active for an older gal (her age is estimated at around 7) and loves spending time outside. When a volunteer approaches her cage with a leash, she wiggles all over and does her signature “happy dance.” Once outside, she goes potty immediately – Melony has definitely been house trained.
The staff at LifeLine describe her as calm, quiet and very treat motivated. She is great with other dogs and chooses to ignore cats – unlike some naughty younger pups!
Melony quickly wins over everyone she meets with her sweet, intelligent eyes and gentle nature. She does not demand affection, but loves to sit quietly with a kind human by her side. Once she meets her one-true-human she will likely come out of her shell and become a big-time snuggler.
Melony has a few fatty lumps like many older dogs and could benefit from some joint health supplements. Otherwise she is a healthy, well-behaved girl who will become a faithful, devoted best friend to anyone who is willing to give her a chance.
Are you Melony’s holiday miracle? Contact Fulton County Animal Services at 404-613-0358 or send an email to adoptions@fultonanimalservices.com. Melony’s Pet ID is A488631.
