Entrant's First Name
Kayleen

Your Pet's Rescue Story
I met Gendry for the first time in 2019. I was grieving the recent loss of my senior rescue, and had just moved to Florida. While browsing the Orange County Animal Shelter website, I saw a small dog sitting far in the corner, with fur matted beyond belief, and something just felt right.

At our first encounter, his body was shaved down, save for a schnauzer-like beard. When I knelt down to pet him, he wagged his tail, jumped in my lap and kissed my chin. He knew, I knew, the volunteers knew: he was mine. And his tail hasn’t stopped wagging since. They told me it took 3 days to catch him as he was running around Orlando in the middle of August, and it took 3 seconds for him to catch me.

It’s been nearly 5 years, and Gendry has a new house, a dad, and 2 other dog siblings that he pretends to not love. Now, he spends his free time posing for photo shoots, trying to eat everyone’s breakfast (bonus points if there’s watermelon involved), and lounging poolside. The only time I see a trace of the forgotten dog he once was is when he is trembling in my arms during thunder storms, and I just do whatever I can to ensure he knows he is safe and loved forever.