“Perseverance is the key to success”. This is evident in Nemo’s (previously known as Brenda) adoption story.
Audrey’s journey of finding a new family dog started in December last year after her beloved Ginger of 12 years passed on from a heart failure in October. With her daughter studying overseas and her son in NS, it became unbearably quiet at home for Audrey and her husband.
Audrey’s colleague, who was then an SOSD volunteer, invited them to the adoption drive at Dempsey on 6 Dec and that’s when sweet Nemo came into their lives.
“We had actually identified a couple of pups from the online photos to interact with but on the day of the visit we only managed to interact with Nemo. Nemo was not cooperative. She didn’t move one bit for the two hours that we were there. She even refused to stand up for us to determine how tall she was. In fact, one kind volunteer had to carry her up for us to have a better and closer look at her.”
Despite all these, it was still love at first sight for Audrey.
“Nemo has the shy and gentle look which resembled that of a deer. She is totally different from our previous dog.”
Audrey quickly filled up the interest-to-adopt form and was soon contacted by SOSD’s rehomer, Hui Jin, to arrange for homestay on 31-Dec.
“Our adventures with Nemo started when she peed on me on the first day when I went to her fosterer’s house to pick her up. More adventures followed as she didn’t want to use the pee-pads prepared for her although she was pee-pad trained.”
Nemo spent most of her time hiding from Audrey and her husband. She refused to cooperate and the need to constantly clean up her pee and poo was starting to take a toll on Audrey and her family.
Thankfully, Audrey decided to contact SOSD for professional help and Charissa, a volunteer trainer at SOSD visited Audrey for an assessment. It turned out that Nemo was extremely fearful and insecure.
“Charissa initially suggested that I return Nemo to SOSD. This is because training and rehabilitation for fearful and insecure dogs require a lot of determination, time and effort. But I’ve grown to love Nemo over the two weeks, it was impossible for me to give up on Nemo!”
Audrey decided that the best option was to rehabilitate Nemo on her own instead of returning her to SOSD.
“With tips offered by Charissa, a support group for Nemo was formed. We converted our other bathroom into a space for Nemo to live in and installed a gate for her as she needed a secure space to be comfortable in.”
Everyday, Audrey would go into the bathroom to play and interact with Nemo. She, being a smart girl, was able to pick up many commands within a few weeks.
“Two months later, we saw her wag her tail for the first time. It was a moment of joy for us! With SOSD volunteers coming over to interact with Nemo, she started to be less fearful of people. Soon she was willing to accept treats and did not mind being touched by them.”
Day by day, with the care given by Audrey, Nemo made progress. She can now be seen exploring the different corners of Audrey’s house and is able to go out for walks.
“We are glad that we persevered and adopted Nemo after three months of home-stay. She has brought tremendous joy and companionship to our family. This out-weighs all the “sweat & tears” we had for her initially.”
Even though Audrey knows that the road to her full rehabilitation is going to be very long, she is ready to embrace it and go through this journey with Nemo.
Thank you Audrey for your love and care for Nemo!
We have 2 adoption drives coming up:
12 Nov 2016 (3pm – 7pm)
7 Cycle at 19 Anamalai Avenue #01-01 Singapore 279987
20th Nov 2016 (12.30pm – 4.30pm)
Blk 115 Whampoa Road Singapore 320115 (Void Deck)
