Dog landed in shelter when family faced ‘unimaginable hardships.’ Then came good news
A “resilient” dog went “through so much” — then her luck took a turn for the better.
Cleo, who arrived at a Florida shelter underweight but full of love, was adopted into a new home.
“Everyone here was so excited for her,” Regan Blessinger, marketing and content manager for the Humane Society of Tampa Bay, told McClatchy News in a Dec. 10 email. “This family is perfect for her and she will have the best time with the kids.”
The heartwarming adoption came after 1-year-old Cleo experienced a rough patch. Her past owners struggled to give her enough food, leaving her hungry and thin, photos show.
“Her previous family loved her deeply and did everything they could to care for her, but after facing unimaginable hardships, they had to make the difficult decision to surrender her so she could get the help she needed,” the shelter wrote in a November Facebook post.
As Cleo started her journey toward recovery, she became known for being a loving, happy dog with a positive attitude, McClatchy News reported.
“While Cleo may be underweight and her ribs are visible, her spirit is anything but broken,” the shelter wrote in November. “This sweet girl radiates happiness and love, showing us all what true resilience looks like.”
Then one day, a family visited the shelter and noticed Cleo perk up.
“She was very gentle, and you could see she knew how to play well with kids,” one of the family members told the humane society in a Dec. 9 social media post. “She was considered ‘high energy,’ but my daughter managed to tire her out before the adoption was finished, meaning both she and the kids would be plenty entertained and active together.”
The family adopted Cleo, ending her stay at the shelter. Several Facebook users congratulated the dog as she kicked off her next chapter.
“I think with our four-year-old daughter, Cleo will get plenty of under-the-table snacks and gain that weight fast,” the adopter wrote.
This story was originally published December 11, 2024 at 7:48 AM with the headline "Dog landed in shelter when family faced ‘unimaginable hardships.’ Then came good news."
