Izzy

Izzy is 2 years old. Her previous owner (who bred her) told us that she is 1/2 chihuahua & 1/2 "puginese" as her dad was supposedly a pug/peke mix. The couple was originally planning to keep her but after a year they decided to downsize their dogs & give her up for a new home. They agreed to surrender her to our rescue so that she could get the vetting & protection needed in her rehoming process. It's a good thing they did because they did NOT disclose that she had some EXTREME anxiety! That would've absolutely set her up for a disaster being "rehomed" to a random person. She has spent several months in rehab & improved greatly! Please read the rest of the post carefully to determine if you would be a good fit for this sweet angel. <br/>(She has been spayed, vaccinated, passed an annual exam & heartworm test & received a microchip. She weighs about 6-8lbs.)<br/><br/>I had posted Izzy originally with the hopes that she would get some potentially serious applicants as we started her rehab. I removed her after a few weeks because 1) most applicants just wanted "a dog" and didn't care to respect what SHE needs. 2) it was becoming apparent that her rehabilitation wasn't going to happen as quickly as some dogs, but she was going to take a long time to truly assess. <br/>After about 4 months in our care, earlier this year, Izzy was placed in a foster-to-adopt home & once again taken offline. The family patiently waited for the minimum 3 months as it is said "a dog takes 3 months to decompress in a new home" but they had higher hopes of her acting like a "normal dog" & decided not to adopt Izzy since she remains quite scaredy. She has made great progress! I've even seen her open up MORE in the weeks she has been back with me. But she is a traumatized dog & she will always have a level of apprehension. She's not going to become a confident, peppy dog. Though she IS very affectionate & has a great personality. She will be a loyal companion for the right person. <br/><br/>Izzy came in as an extreeeeemely nervous dog. Possibly the worst I've ever seen. She was likely abused but she didn't flinch from being picked up or show any aggression. She just froze like a deer in the headlights & was ABSOLUTELY petrified of EVEYRTHING. She would flinch at practically every single movement you made. But she didn't recoil when you touched her. I almost wonder if she was just kept in isolation for so long - like living in a garage all her life - that she had a complete lack of social development. Izzy lived in my personal bedroom/bathroom for the first few months so that she could slowly interact with 1 person (eventually 2 people) & not get overwhelmed by any unnecessary foot traffic. She always wanted to be pet/held/loved but it took a long time for her to stop being wildly terrified. I could pick her up & sit with her on my bed & she would shake uncontrollably. At first the shaking was about a minute. After 2-3 months she would only shake for about 15 seconds. But it was still evident this dog was so so scared. Towards the end of her stay with me, when she was getting ready to go to her trial home, the progress had turned into her FINALLY approaching me for pets (she would lean towards me but took months to walk towards me) and beginning to go on walks outside. Though any potty she did outside seemed to be involuntary sadly... she was beginning to enjoy the outside trips. <br/><br/>With her new "family" Izzy did take a while to open up but showed the same signs of comfortability there. She needs to be kept in a pen or a secure closed room so that she can't hide under furniture, out of reach. She will normally put herself in a corner & ball up with her back to the wall. If you give her potty pads she does use them. And if you take her for regular walks she did begin to learn the idea of potty training! After she settles in a bit she will start to come up to you for attention & some of her favorite treats. She never learned to relax when being picked up (fully stiff, bug-eyed, look of horror) but she also doesn't nip or resist as if she minds being picked up. She loves to be put on your lap, whether in bed or on the couch together... she will get startled when you move but she just loves being in your lap & being pet! I used to leave her on my bed while cleaning my room & she would tunnel under the pillows & peek out at me. She's quite affectionate & it melts my heart when she nuzzles your hand for more nose scratches. If we could sit on the couch all day I think she'd be perfectly happy! A calm/quiet household with someone who works from home (or retired) & minimal activity would be ideal for her. No other pets or children. She has only been tested with a cat & she was so nervous that she refused to even acknowledge it's presence. <br/><br/>The only issue with finding her a home has been that people seem to want her for her looks & expect her to be more open/engaging than she is. I had a few folks in the beginning who would text me occasionally asking "how she's doing" as if they didn't want to commit to her until they could see how much progress she might make. We know at this point that Izzy is a severely shy dog & may always show signs of trauma. She will not be going to a home that hopes for her to change. She needs love to meet her where she's at. She WILL grow & bond with her new person, but don't let this dog get returned again because she didn't end up meeting your expectations of progress. Consider how far she's come & how long it took to even get this far! For the first week that I had her, she would not eat/drink/potty except ONCE every 2 days. Soon she decided she needed more than that & it increased to daily habits. But only after about 2-3 months did she finally start eating & peeing twice a day. We will never know what she went thru in her first year of life.. But she is willing to trust humans despite everything & we will find her the right human. There will be a setback/adjustment period when she moves so definitely prepare for lots of patience with this girl. But she has a beautiful heart that she's looking to trust to you. <br/><br/>We are accepting applications at this time. The adoption fee will be $700 to cover her vetting costs, care, and a donation to the rescue. A young, small breed like her is considered an "angel dog" which means the extra bit of profit that she can bring in will keep the rescue funded so we can continue to help other pets. The fee is not negotiable. Please send a message if you think you're a potential match. Thank you for supporting rescue dogs!

Izzy is 2 years old. Her previous owner (who bred her) told us that she is 1/2 chihuahua & 1/2 "puginese" as her dad was supposedly a pug/peke mix. The couple was originally planning to keep her but after a year they decided to downsize their dogs & give her up for a new home. They agreed to surrender her to our rescue so that she could get the vetting & protection needed in her rehoming process. It's a good thing they did because they did NOT disclose that she had some EXTREME anxiety! That would've absolutely set her up for a disaster being "rehomed" to a random person. She has spent several months in rehab & improved greatly! Please read the rest of the post carefully to determine if you would be a good fit for this sweet angel.
(She has been spayed, vaccinated, passed an annual exam & heartworm test & received a microchip. She weighs about 6-8lbs.)

I had posted Izzy originally with the hopes that she would get some potentially serious applicants as we started her rehab. I removed her after a few weeks becau

Izzy is 2 years old. Her previous owner (who bred her) told us that she is 1/2 chihuahua & 1/2 "puginese" as her dad was supposedly a pug/peke mix. The couple was originally planning to keep her but after a year they decided to downsize their dogs & give her up for a new home. They agreed to surrender her to our rescue so that she could get the vetting & protection needed in her rehoming process. It's a good thing they did because they did NOT disclose that she had some EXTREME anxiety! That would've absolutely set her up for a disaster being "rehomed" to a random person. She has spent several months in rehab & improved greatly! Please read the rest of the post carefully to determine if you would be a good fit for this sweet angel.
(She has been spayed, vaccinated, passed an annual exam & heartworm test & received a microchip. She weighs about 6-8lbs.)

I had posted Izzy originally with the hopes that she would get some potentially serious applicants as we started her rehab. I removed her after a few weeks because 1) most applicants just wanted "a dog" and didn't care to respect what SHE needs. 2) it was becoming apparent that her rehabilitation wasn't going to happen as quickly as some dogs, but she was going to take a long time to truly assess. 
After about 4 months in our care, earlier this year, Izzy was placed in a foster-to-adopt home & once again taken offline. The family patiently waited for