05/28/2026
✨ Surprise…we found another dog. 🫣🐾
Well…technically, I think he found us.
We’ve been keeping a secret. Not intentionally, and I definitely didn’t mean for so much time to go by, but time moves at warp speed around here and somehow this little cutie has already been with us for SIX whole weeks.
And today? He got neutered. 😅✂️
I actually realized yesterday that it had officially been six weeks when our equine farrier, Kyle, was here, because the day we first spotted this little gremlin was the last time Kyle was here.
Anyone who has visited the sanctuary recently has already met him. Summer nicknamed him “Biggie Smalls,” but we’ve yet to decide on a proper name. 😂
So here’s the story of how dog number 10 entered our lives…
One morning while trimming donkey hooves, Kyle and I spotted a little dog standing along our wood line. Naturally, our guardian dogs started barking at him, and then the donkeys noticed him too and began slowly stalking him from the other side of the fence.
We walked down there, but the poor little dude was terrified. I couldn’t get close to him, and he started heading toward the road, so I sprinted to the house to get Summer. By the time we got back outside, he was gone.
We drove the farm cart out onto our little road and spotted him again. At one point, a car flew by going at least 55 mph, completely ignoring me waving my arms trying to get them to slow down. I don’t even know if they saw Summer walking along the side of the road behind a little dog. Had he been in the road at that exact moment instead of on the edge, it would’ve been bad.
Luckily, he suddenly turned and ran down my family’s driveway, obviously having no idea where he was going. Once we got down the driveway, we parked the cart and Summer approached on foot.
She managed to lure him over with wet cat food, and when she finally got close enough…she grabbed him.
…and he bit the absolute s**t out of her. 😭
Not because he was aggressive. Because he was absolutely terrified. But honestly, we were scared he was going to head back toward the road, so when Summer got the opportunity to safely secure him, she took it.
He had a collar on, but no tags.
Summer immediately took him to two different places to be scanned for a microchip. Nothing. We checked local lost and found groups, posted him in those groups, and kept our eyes open for lost dog signs…nothing.
At first, we truly hoped someone was missing him because aside from some internal and external parasites, which we treated immediately, and our very first-ever experience with dog mites 😳…he seemed healthy.
But I don’t think anyone was looking for him. 😔
Fast forward six weeks and well…
He’s been weaving his way into our hearts. 🩵
In his short time here, he has:
✨ Met all the farm animals
✨ Attended yoga
✨ Attended our Earth Day volunteer event
✨ Met both our farriers
✨ Learned how to escape the dog yard
✨ Learned how to escape the garden
✨ Learned how to escape a collar and harness
✨ Gone on unauthorized adventures with the pigs
✨ Learned to walk on a harness…one he can’t pull out of
✨ Tried every dog bed we own but still prefers sleeping with me or Summer
✨ Slowly started learning how to eat fruits and veggies
✨ Slowly started learning how to play with toys
We’ve learned:
✨ He’s good with dogs, cats, and farm animals.
✨ He’s an Olympic-level escape artist.
✨ He freaks out about being crated.
✨ He has severe separation anxiety.
And when I say severe…I mean this dog has literally broken out to track me down at the barn and all around the property. And when he can’t get out, he screams for hours. I honestly didn’t think anyone could outdo Wilder in the separation anxiety department, but he said “challenge accepted.” 🫠
He also has this fun habit of hiking his leg on things…not inside our house…but apparently buildings like the volunteer barn and my work do not count as “inside.” 🙃 Hopefully today’s surgery helps with that fun little habit. 😂
Anyways…surprise.
As a sanctuary, we don’t typically adopt out unless under special circumstances. However, 10 dogs is a lot, so we did ask people we know and trust, including friends, volunteers, our farriers, and our yoga instructor, since everyone adores him.
Summer says they’re trauma bonded since he bit her. She cried on the way to the vet this morning, left her sweater with him so he could smell her, and sponsored his vetting. So I think it might be safe to say…we’re stuck with him. 🥺
We’ve still been undecided on a proper name, so we may turn to y’all for help.
