Dog That Spent 11 Years in Shelter Finally Gets Her Happily Ever After

A dog that has known shelter life for 11 out of her 13 years finally got her happy ending a few hundred miles away.

Fiona was originally picked up by animal control as a stray and brought to the Second Chance Shelter in Boaz, Alabama. For 11 years she sat there, waiting for someone to take a chance on her, but as she aged, the likelihood of her getting adopted lessened. Senior dogs have an adoption rate of 25 percent, while the rate for younger dogs and puppies is 60 percent.

Luckily, Fiona was transported to a foster-based rescue facility in Wisconsin dedicated to homing senior, hospice and special needs dogs. Albert’s Dog Lounge Vice President Lindsey Decker took Fiona in as a foster dog on March 23 as she searched for a forever home for the senior sweetheart.

Fiona’s story quickly went viral, pulling on viewer’s heartstrings when they learned she had lived in the shelter for over a decade, Decker told Newsweek. Albert’s Dog Lounge didn’t publicly post Fiona when the adoption applications started pouring in.

By April 5, Fiona was with her forever family in Greenfield, Wisconsin, a nearly 730-mile journey to her happily ever after.

Decker wanted to find Fiona a specific home that met a few items on her checklist: a yard, a fenced-in property and dog siblings. Fiona is a shy dog, Decker said, and liked to follow her other dogs.

Luckily, the family that adopted Fiona already had two other dogs from Albert’s Dog Lounge, as well as a fenced-in yard. It was a perfect fit with a preapproved family. And the best part was that it didn’t take long for Fiona to feel comfortable.

“I was really surprised how quickly she took to home life,” Decker said. “She is totally settled. It’s crazy.”

When Decker first brought Fiona to her forever home, the family let her roam around in the yard to get comfortable. They eventually opened the sliding door, and Fiona let herself in, explored, went upstairs and stopped to admire herself in the full-length hallway mirror.

Fiona will always be a shy dog, Decker said, but the way she has fully settled into both her foster home and now this home within days has been amazing.

“I hope it encourages people to foster and adopt, and if you can’t do either, donate or volunteer at a shelter or volunteer to drive a transport,” Decker said.

Her Story Isn’t ‘Rare’

While Fiona finally got her happy ending 11 years later, Decker said that unfortunately stories like hers are not rare.

Each year, 6.3 million pets enter U.S. shelters, which is an average of 17,260 a day, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The number of dogs and cats taken in by pet shelters hit 46,807 during January 2023, an increase of 1,744 compared with January 2022, 24Petwatch’s Shelter Watch Report found.

Around 920,000 surrendered animals are euthanized every year. Shelters are striving to minimize euthanasia rates by promoting adoption campaigns, spaying and neutering programs and behavior rehabilitation.

Decker said the geriatric dog population is at the highest risk of euthanasia and the most overlooked. Two dogs Albert’s Dog Lounge will be bringing up from the South in May have been in the shelter system for over eight years.

“People were drawn to the fact [Fiona] was in the shelter for over 11 years and they didn’t even know more about her,” Decker said. “What they care about is saving a dog who has been in a shelter for that long. Now we know we can get these dogs adopted.”

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