06/12/2026
It's time to hop aboard the adoption train for another story in waiting! All aboard!🚂
Coda (fka as Hank, and also Skunky), one of Amara's 11 pups, has officially been adopted, again!
Skip to the paws (🐾) below if you already know their journey, otherwise here it is in case you missed the backstory of Amara and pups:
Coda transferred to us from one of our shelter partners, the Chula Vista Animal Care Facility, in February of 2023.
We received a special request for the transfer of a German Shepherd mix mom who had not only just arrived at their shelter but delivered 11 pups! Two girls, nine boys!
With all shelters bursting at the seams for quite some time now, they needed a quiet place for mom and pups to receive some extra tlc while also freeing up some much-needed space at their shelter. We made an appointment to scoop up Amara (mom) and pups when the pups were just 6 days old!
As you may have been following along through numerous previous posts, we unfortunately played a lot of red light, green light when it came to their adoption availability due to a number of curable health issues they unknowingly transferred with. It is also no fault of the shelter's as they received Amara as an emaciated and pregnant mom from the public with no indications of other health issues. Along with current record low adoptions felt across all shelters & rescues, they have hung around much longer than expected. This in turn meant missed opportunities when pups are at their highest adoption peak of 8-10 months of age.
Through suspected allergies and holds for further observation, to confirmed scabies and lengthy scabies treatments, to a papilloma virus that remained dormant in Amara that reared its head and spread to most of her pups, it was quite the journey to get Amara & pups through their ailments while also doing our best to protect the other dogs in our care. With careful cross contamination protocols, numerous vet appointments, determination, and long hours, Amara & pups overcame their struggles and were able to make their public debut in August!
🐾 Flashback over! Here is the continuation of Coda's adoption:
Coda was adopted by a family in August of 2023. At the time, we were told he would be supervised in the yard and coming to work with the owner. Unfortunately, he was left unsupervised in the low-fenced yard when they weren't available and began jumping over it on several occasions. We are grateful that he wasn't hit by a car, as he lived near a busy street with a blind corner.
We were contacted by the adopter in October of 2024, requesting a return. It is then that we learned of the nature of his living arrangement and tightened our fence requirement policy for future adoptions. Unless a dog is a guardian breed, leaving a dog unattended in a yard is a recipe for eventual trouble.
We picked him up from the home and took him back to the rescue where he was happy to get reacquainted with his remaining siblings!
In early September of 2025, he started his foster-to-adopt to make sure he was a good fit. He fit in well with his new Australian Shepherd mix sister and their cat, becoming an official part of the family in late September of 2025!
Coda, it's not often that dogs adopted from us get more than one send-off. While things didn't work out in your previous home, it led you to your current home which is exactly where you needed to be!
You are still the big, sensitive softy that I remember. Your new mom told us all about your ventures with your new dog and cat siblings, Pye and Tule Fog! She also tells me you're as cuddly, affectionate, and polite as you've always been.
We still have five of your brothers and one sister here at the rescue, and they're doing great in their play groups while they search for their forever homes. Your sister, Pumpkin, is still a happy addition to my home and is as sweet as you all are!
Enjoy sniffing the flowers, hanging out with your new family, playing chase and tug-of-war with Pye, and carrying all your stuffed toys around your home!
