Ausra is the dog you might never even know I have. She spent her early years (who knows how many…) with animal hoarders. Fortunately all 40+ dogs were surrendered to animal control. Unfortunately, physical and behavioral issues from inbreeding led to over half being euthanized upon arrival, and the rest were rescue only. I was called in by one of those rescues. She’d spent 3 weeks at a shelter, then 3 weeks with a very experienced foster. In that time, she had rarely left her dog bed, chewed or slipped through every leash put on her, only ate small amounts every 2-3 days, never once went outside and never once pottied outside (she would urinate on pads when alone and literally had to have her bowels evacuated weekly by the vet). Well agreed to take her home and see what I could do. Within a week, I had her pottying outside on leash and eating regular kibble daily. Then we plateued…for about four months…I’ll probably never be able to answer exactly why I stuck it out with her and eventually adopted her. But I will say I cried happy tears the first time I came home and she greeted me with a little howl and took a few steps off her bed (which she otherwise only left at potty time). I cried the first time she ran through my yard, not running away from something or running to get back inside, just running for the joy of running. I cried the first time she found her way onto the dog bed in my bedroom (it took well over a year). Ausra never leaves my property, but at this point most friends who meet her just think she’s a “normal” skittish dog (little do they know). She’s pushed me as a trainer and an owner, and has helped me learn to adapt both my training and my expectations to each individual dog. And I know every bit of “normalness” in her life and our relationship and has been earned through love, respect and trust.

Also responds to: Angel, Ausra Angel, Ah-oo-shra (the actual pronunciation of her name I learned years after meeting her)