26Athena2- POB

**Athena is part of the Paws on the Block program and will only be available for private meets and will NOT attend Saturday adoption events!**<br/><br/>Meet Athena!<br/>Sex: Female<br/>Age: Approx 1 Year, 4 Months Old<br/><br/>Crate Trained: Yes!<br/>Potty Trained: Yes!<br/>Leash Trained: Yes! <br/>Dogs: Looking for a home where there are no canine siblings, and can be the only dog. <br/>Cats: Unknown <br/>Kids: Would do best in a tiny human free environment. <br/><br/>What’s going to make you swipe right on Athena? She’s a Belgian Malinois. If that made you smile, keep reading!<br/><br/>Athena isn’t looking for just any home, she’s looking for the right one. At around 50 pounds, she’s a petite girl with all the intelligence, athleticism, loyalty, and personality you’d expect from a Malinois.<br/><br/>But Athena is also a sensitive dog who experiences the world around her deeply. Her ideal person understands working breeds and knows that success isn’t simply about wearing her out. Athena thrives with a balance of physical activity, mental enrichment, routine, rest, and someone who can recognize when she’s nearing her threshold.<br/><br/>Athena originally arrived at El Dorado County Animal Services as a stray and was later adopted and returned. We believe she missed out on important early socialization experiences, and the constant stimulation of the shelter made it difficult for her true personality to shine.<br/><br/>That’s when she joined Paws on the Block, Foothill Dog Rescue’s partnership with Folsom State Prison.<br/><br/>When Athena first arrived in the program, she was skeptical of her new surroundings and needed time to trust the people around her. Her handlers gave her exactly that. With structure, individualized training, enrichment, and plenty of patience, Athena slowly began coming out of her shell. Today, she loves training, tennis balls, puzzle games, sniffing out hidden treats, and having a job to do. She’s highly food and toy motivated, incredibly smart, and has formed deep bonds with the handlers who care for her every day.<br/><br/>And if she gets a little vocal while playing? As one handler joked, “She’s like a sports car—all she’s doing is revving her engine.”<br/><br/>Athena also has boundaries, and we love that about her. She prefers to observe new people before deciding they’re worthy of joining her inner circle. But once you earn her trust?<br/><br/>“Once she knows that person, she is a friend forever.”<br/><br/>Athena would do best as the only dog in the home, without young children, and with a secure, fully fenced yard. She needs an adopter experienced with Malinois or other working breeds who will understand her body language, respect her boundaries, and allow her to settle in at her own pace.<br/><br/>Her handlers describe her as intelligent, sensitive, goofy, eager to learn, and incredibly loyal.<br/><br/>But perhaps one handler said it best: “She is the program’s princess.”<br/><br/>Athena isn’t looking for someone who’s perfect. She’s looking for someone willing to understand her. And if that’s you, you’ll quickly discover what her handlers already know: this princess is worth earning the trust of.<br/>If interested, please submit an adoption application at: www.foothilldogrescue.org<br/><br/>Our adult dog adoption fee is $350 (with $5 processing fee if paid by card) and includes spay, rabies, DAPP and Bordetella vaccines, deworming, microchip, heart worm test and lifetime registration.<br/><br/>For more information about Paws on the Block, visit Foothill Dog Rescue on Facebook or email pawsontheblock.fdr@gmail.com!

**Athena is part of the Paws on the Block program and will only be available for private meets and will NOT attend Saturday adoption events!**

Meet Athena!
Sex: Female
Age: Approx 1 Year, 4 Months Old

Crate Trained: Yes!
Potty Trained: Yes!
Leash Trained: Yes!
Dogs: Looking for a home where there are no canine siblings, and can be the only dog.
Cats: Unknown
Kids: Would do best in a tiny human free environment.

What’s going to make you swipe right on Athena? She’s a Belgian Malinois. If that made you smile, keep reading!

Athena isn’t looking for just any home, she’s looking for the right one. At around 50 pounds, she’s a petite girl with all the intelligence, athleticism, loyalty, and personality you’d expect from a Malinois.

But Athena is also a sensitive dog who experiences the world around her deeply. Her ideal person understands working breeds and knows that success isn’t simply about wearing her out. Athena thrives with a balance of physical ac

**Athena is part of the Paws on the Block program and will only be available for private meets and will NOT attend Saturday adoption events!**

Meet Athena!
Sex: Female
Age: Approx 1 Year, 4 Months Old

Crate Trained: Yes!
Potty Trained: Yes!
Leash Trained: Yes!
Dogs: Looking for a home where there are no canine siblings, and can be the only dog.
Cats: Unknown
Kids: Would do best in a tiny human free environment.

What’s going to make you swipe right on Athena? She’s a Belgian Malinois. If that made you smile, keep reading!

Athena isn’t looking for just any home, she’s looking for the right one. At around 50 pounds, she’s a petite girl with all the intelligence, athleticism, loyalty, and personality you’d expect from a Malinois.

But Athena is also a sensitive dog who experiences the world around her deeply. Her ideal person understands working breeds and knows that success isn’t simply about wearing her out. Athena thrives with a balance of physical activity, mental enrichment, routine, rest, and someone who can recognize when she’s nearing her threshold.

Athena originally arrived at El Dorado County Animal Services as a stray and was later adopted and returned. We believe she missed out on important early socialization experiences, and the constant stimulation of the shelter made it difficult for her true personality to shine.