Saturday's Dog: Tatiana

My friend, Cindy, canine massage therapist extraordinaire, and I recently spent some time at Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury, MA playing with and photographing some of the dogs there available for adoption. The idea is to feature different dogs here each week in the hope of getting them in front of more people - one of which might just be looking for this dog to add to their family.

Today's dog is: Tatiana!

Isn't she cute!?!

Tatiana is a very shy, 9 year old Sato who has been at Buddy Dog for about 4 years. She's so shy in fact, this was the second time I tried to photograph her. The first time, whenever I picked up the camera, she turned her head and hid. A little wiser on our more recent visit, I set up a blind of sheets and took pictures of her while she played with Cindy, paying "no attention to the 'man' behind the curtain".

Tatiana was adopted out once before but she came back even more traumatized by the experience than she was in the shelter. In fact, she's not unhappy at the shelter - she's not terribly bothered by other dogs and she doesn't get a lot of attention from the public, which is just fine by her.

When I first arrived yesterday, she had her face tucked into her blankets and her back to any visitors who might want to befriend her. This, as you can imagine, makes it unlikely people will stop to inquire about her.

Oh but they should. She's playful and sweet to those she knows and is comfortable with - she was giving Cindy kisses before she even got the leash on. She just needs to get her head out of her blankets so the right person(s) can find her.

She will need a gentle, patient owner, one who is familiar with shy dogs and ready to give Tata the space she needs to adjust to a new environment. She would not do well in a noisy, busy home and I would not recommend children in the home of any extremely shy dog.

It's also likely that, due to her first bad adoption experience, Buddy Dog would rather she continue to live with them as the shelter mascot than be put in the wrong home again.

But every dog deserves their own home with their own people who love them above all comers. And Tatiana is no exception.

If you want to help that special person find this special dog, please consider tweeting her information or posting her to your Facebook profile.

You never know who might be looking for a dog just like Tatiana.

Oops, the Great Oz has been discovered.