Gibson was just a puppy when he and his siblings were transferred to Lawrence Humane from a rural shelter. Before they entered that shelter, they had been kept outside in less than ideal conditions, under-socialized, and unhealthy. They stayed in that small shelter for months, with no opportunities for adoption, so Gibson and his siblings were transferred to Lawrence Humane. They were 7 months old at that point and had already spent 4 months of their lives in an animal shelter.
Gibson’s siblings all got adopted, but Gibson remained. And the longer he was in the shelter setting, the more his mental health deteriorated. No matter how much love and care shelter staff provide, dogs are not intended to live in an animal shelter forever. While at first Gibson enjoyed playing with other dogs, over time he became more defensive and less tolerant, no longer enjoying daily playgroups. As his stress and anxiety increased, he developed jumpy and mouthy behaviors that made it harder for him to meet potential adopters. Gibson began to rapidly lose weight due to his stress, his physical appearance mirroring how he was feeling inside.
But Lawrence Humane staff were committed to Gibson, every single staff member doing all they could to support Gibson’s mental health and find a positive path forward for him. The Behavior Team worked extensively with Gibson, making sure that he had food puzzles and other enrichment to work his brain. The Medical Team provided Gibson with anti-anxiety medication. The Adoptions and Animal Care Teams took Gibson out to play fetch and enjoy some one-on-one time. Our Volunteer Coordinator sent Gibson out on as many Mass St. Mutt outings as possible, making sure that he had time out of his kennel and many opportunities to decompress. The Marketing Team came up with new and creative ways to market Gibson to adopters and fosters. But despite everyone’s efforts, Gibson remained stuck at the shelter without any prospects in sight…until we met Karli.
For the first time in her life, Karli found herself without a dog and decided this was her opportunity to foster. She and her husband, Jeff, were open to whichever dog needed a foster home most, no matter what challenges that dog might have, and Gibson was that dog. As he was settling into his foster home, it became clear that Gibson had a special connection with Karli. Three days after bringing Gibson home, Karli fell into a grand mal seizure, with Gibson by her side. In the days following the seizure, Karli and her husband realized that Gibson had detected that she wasn’t feeling well and tried to alert her to what was happening. And in the days and months that followed, as Karli worked with her medical team to figure out what was happening, Gibson stayed right by her side. He alerted her when he felt something coming on, put his head in her lap to ground her as she emerged from seizure activity, and even went as far as to find Karli’s husband in another room and bring him to Karli during a seizure. Karli had become Gibson’s person and he was going to do all he could to keep her safe.
After 17 long months in the shelter system, waiting for a forever home, Gibson was adopted by his foster parents, Karli and Jeff. Gibson is now healthy, happy, and loved. And he is working on developing the skills he needs to become Karli’s service dog, building on his natural abilities and attention to Karli. Gibson got the happy ending that we seek for every single animal, but his story could have had a very different, tragic ending. And if it had, what then for Karli?
Every animal shelter across the country is full, operating at maximum capacity, and Lawrence Humane is no different. We seek a positive outcome for every animal in our care, but we also know that it’s irresponsible to warehouse animals who are suffering for months on end. While Lawrence Humane staff provide the best possible care and love for the animals at the shelter, foster care will almost always be preferred. In foster care, animals don’t have as much stress or noise, they’re able to decompress, and they can show us who they truly are. Dogs are so much more than their challenging pasts. They are so much more than how they present in an animal shelter, when they are stressed out and scared. And that is why Lawrence Humane will never stop trying to find the best path forward for every animal that comes through our doors.
Our live release rate is 94% – meaning that 94% of the animals who enter our care have a positive outcome and we never euthanize for time or space. But this is not possible without our community’s support. If you think that you might be interested in fostering or would like to learn more about what it means as a foster to provide care, comfort, and a temporary home to an animal as they search for their forever home, please let us know! You can sign up to be a foster at lawrencehumane.org/foster or email our foster coordinator, Tesla, at foster@lawrencehumane.org to learn more.
