The dogs all seemed adorable, and I knew this was going to be hard. How could we pick the right one when they all seemed so sweet? While Savannah spoke to one of the smaller dogs, a dog sitting in the last cage caught my attention.
The tan-and-black dog lay in the corner with his head resting on his paws. He didn’t look up at us like the other dogs, and I got the feeling he was sad. Krista noticed me looking his way and came to my side. “We don’t know much about that dog. Someone dropped him off a few days ago, said his name was Coco, and left.”
“He seems depressed. Is that possible?”
“Sure. I don’t know what happened to him, but he hasn’t shown much interest in anyone or anything since he got here.”
“He’s a beautiful dog. He’s a German Shepherd, right?”
“Yeah, that’s definitely his breed. I just wish the person who brought him in would have given us more information.” She thought the dog was probably worth a lot of money, so it didn’t make sense he’d been dropped off here. “He’s a beautiful animal. I’ve tried to make friends with him, but he’s not very responsive.”
She was thinking that all of the staff had tried to engage him, but none of them had succeeded. It was a shame, since that meant he’d be hard to place with a family, and the longer he stayed, the worse his chances of adoption became. Lately, he’d hardly touched his food. It was so sad, like he’d given up on life.
Hearing that broke my heart. I wandered over to his cage and crouched down on his level to peer at him. “Hey Coco. What’s going on?”
His head jerked up, and his ears straightened. He studied me for a few seconds, then rose to his feet and trotted over to me. He sat down on his haunches, right next to where I crouched, and looked me straight in the eyes. Surprised, I smiled and reached out my fingers for him to sniff.
“Hey buddy. What’s up? Are you sad?”
After sniffing my fingers, he gave them a lick before nuzzling them with his nose. Then he placed his paw on the cage, right next to my hand, and let out a low woof that sounded just like help. Surprised, I lost my balance and fell on my butt.
He stood, peering my way like he was concerned that I’d fallen over, then woofed deep in his throat asking if I was all right.
“I’m fine,” I told him. “I’m just surprised, that’s all.” Oops. Did I just say that out loud? I glanced behind me, noticing that Krista, Josh, and Savannah were all watching me with fascination.
Needing a distraction, I smiled at my kids and looked back at the dog. “Coco, this is Josh and Savannah.” They came close to the cage and knelt beside me.
He looked from me to them, then he moved to where they knelt and sniffed their fingers in greeting. They both spoke to him, and he seemed to enjoy the attention. After they stopped admiring him, he sat down and placed his paw on the cage and woofed.
I heard help again, and both my kids seemed to understand that he wanted something as well. Krista shook her head in wonder. “Wow. He’s never done anything like that before. Do you want to take him outside? We’ve got an area all set up where you can play with him.”
“Yes,” Savannah said.
“Okay, good.” Krista grabbed a leash and opened the cage door. She snapped the leash to his collar and led him out. “From what we’ve observed, he’s well-trained and responds to most of our commands. If you decide you want to take him, I’ll show you what they are and how to talk to him.”
I had a feeling that wasn’t going to be necessary, since I could understand him just fine. He let her lead him out of the cage, but he stopped next to me and wouldn’t budge. She shrugged and handed the leash to me and we followed her outside.
As soon as I started walking, he stayed right beside me. I took him through a door to a fenced lawn area with trees and a bench. Krista explained some of the commands to me, and I walked him around the enclosure. He was so well-trained that I wondered if he’d been a service dog, or even a police dog.
“Now let’s take him off his leash,” Krista said, handing a rope toy to Josh. “That signals to him that it’s okay to play, and you can see how he interacts with you.”
She unhooked his leash, and he ran over to Josh and Savannah. He played tug-of-war with Josh and the rope. Soon, both of the kids were talking to him and petting him like they were best friends. Coco followed their commands with attentive intelligence, and we were all impressed by how smart he was.
As we watched them interact, Krista shook her head. “This is unbelievable. He’s never taken to anyone like this.” She wondered what made us so special. She’d heard that animals had a sixth sense about people. Maybe he knew we’d be a good match for him? But what if we didn’t take him? She didn’t even want to think about that. We had to take him. We just had to.
I wanted to assure her that he was my choice, but I had to talk to my kids first. Still, the way they were enjoying his company, I didn’t think I had anything to worry about. Coco nuzzled Josh’s hand, then trotted over to the toy box. He picked up a Frisbee and brought it back, dropping it at Josh’s feet.
Josh threw it, and Coco made some amazing catches. He always brought it back and dropped it for Josh to throw. After the third time, Coco surprised everyone by giving it to Savannah. He looked at her with his tongue hanging out like he was grinning, and she couldn’t resist his charm.
Savannah could throw just as well as Josh, and Coco had a great time. They switched to a ball, then a few other toys Coco found in the box. While the kids continued to play with Coco, Krista went back inside, giving us some privacy to make our decision.
Several minutes later, both Josh and Savannah sat on the lawn in the shade. Coco sat down right beside them. After a moment, he laid his chin on Savannah’s knee and gazed up at her with his big brown eyes. She was totally smitten and stroked his silky head with abandon.
“Well, what do you think?” I asked, sitting beside them.
“He’s great,” Josh said, thinking Coco was perfect. Almost too perfect. “I can’t believe someone let him go.”
“Yeah, I know,” I agreed. “I wonder what happened.”
“We have to keep him,” Savannah said. “It’s almost like he picked us, you know?” She couldn’t bear the thought of leaving him there in that cage where he’d seemed so lonely.
“So you’re both good with him?” I asked, just to make sure. They both agreed, so I patted Coco’s head and looked him in the eyes. “You want to come home with us?”
He jumped to his feet and woofed, then he nuzzled Josh and Savannah, who both responded with lots of enthusiastic petting. Last, he approached me, sat on his haunches, and let out a woof that sounded just like home to me.
I was better prepared this time, so I didn’t fall over. Still, it was a shock to understand what he meant. “Okay, Coco. You’re coming home with us.” He woofed again, wagging his tail back and forth and doing a little dance like he was happy.
“Wow,” Josh said. “It’s like he understands exactly what we’re saying.”
“I think he does,” Savannah said, giving his head a loving pat. She clipped the leash onto his collar, and we headed into the shelter.