Hunter

My story

We love a schnauzer, and we love a challenge, so Hunter is lucky he ended up with us! If he had gone to the city shelter as planned, things definitely would not have gone well for him 😞 This 7 year old has been quite a project and we have been working with him behind the scenes for the past few weeks as we try to figure each other out. He came to us a matted terrified screaming snapping mess from a home in the Bronx. They took him in when he was left abandoned tied to a pole a couple years ago but couldn’t really take care of him either. He shut down and starved himself for several days before finally taking some chicken from us- we can usually make friends with even the most aggressive and feral schnauzers pretty quickly but he has been most challenging by far that we have ever had. We had to have him completely sedated to be shaved and he wouldn’t let us pet him for weeks, but he finally is starting to trust and give us a happy greeting and letting us pet his head and shaved-off whiskers. His saving grace is that he’s more comfortable with dogs than people and has even started playing and flirting with them, so he’s finally learning we aren’t so scary if the other dogs like us. He’s gentle and sweet with dogs of all sizes so we know despite the fierce show he puts on toward people, deep down he’s not a bad guy, just terrified and has been let down by humans over and over again. We still can’t pick him up and petting has to be on his terms, and he panics about leashes/collars going over his head but we will continue to go at his pace and on his terms. He is still very much a work in progress but we see a lot of potential in him and he’s much more relaxed and happy around the other dogs at least so we will continue to give him time to figure out his place in the world. If you also love a project schnauzer, have a friendly dog or pack of dogs, and would be interested in giving him unconditional love (at a distance to start), respect, and understanding for life, please reach out to us at njwoof@cs.com. Until then he will remain in foster with us in Northern NJ as we continue to work to earn his trust and we will continue to post updates on this scared little boy 💜 When you support our rescue, in addition to helping the many sweet adoption-ready dogs we take in get vet care to prepare them for homes, you also help us give the gift of time, space, and acceptance to some of the most traumatized little dogs like Hunter. Dogs who have been disappointed, abused, neglected, or misunderstood and aren’t quite ready for society, but are just as deserving of a second chance Since COVID-19, we are no longer holding our Sunday adoption events until further notice, but we are scheduling meet and greet appointments with a specific dog or dogs at our meeting spots in Northern NJ. To streamline adoptions, all communication before, during, and after the adoption process is done through email only: we have limited volunteers able to return phone calls. Submit an application from our website www.secondchance.petfinder.com to speed up the adoption process and email any questions to us at njwoof@cs.com. Please check your email regularly for next steps. All our dogs reside in foster care in Northern NJ until adoption and we do not have a central shelter location. We are a small all-volunteer organization focused on rescuing local dogs from area shelters, as well as accepting some surrenders and puppy mill rescues.

If you have any questions or would like to adopt Hunter, please reach out to the adoption group directly. PetSmart Charities does not facilitate the adoption process. Thank you.