Betty Boop arrived at the Shelter in May 2012. She was given her name by a volunteer because of her wide, inquisitive, flirty eyes. Betty quickly became a volunteer favorite; however, months went by with little adoption interest from the public. Betty’s lush dark brindle color and her pit bull/boxer mixture may have made it more difficult for her to find a home but likely her high energy was the main thing that turned away potential adopters. Many said “Oh, she’s too energetic for my lifestyle” when they met her.
Volunteers who worked with her every week found her to be one of the smartest dogs any of them ever met, both affectionate and obedient. She absolutely loved the water; in fact, lived for it. There is a kiddie pool at the shelter, and every chance she had, Betty couldn’t wait to climb in and immerse herself totally. She also played “chase the water stream” – a volunteer would water the front lawn with a big hose while she tried to “bite” the water. Very funny. This was the type of serious exercies Betty desired and needed to keep her brain and muscular frame engaged. Days passed, months passed and still no one was interested in adopting Betty Boop. The stress of shelter life was starting to get to her and the staff and volunteers were running out of options for finding her a home.The volunteers, determined to find her a home, strategized to get the word out about Betty Boop. They decided to play up her unique attributes – they publicized her as a high energy dog that loves water. It worked!!!!! Flash forward to September — Betty Boop found an amazing home! A couple was looking for a water-loving companion for their male pit bull – Ace – who participates in Splashdog events. They saw Betty’s Petfinder profile and the videos of her with water hose, kiddie pool, etc. They adopted her!
Betty, who is now Amelia, participated in her very first Splashdog event on Saturday at the Bay Area Pet Fair. Several volunteers from the shelter went to watch. Betty and Ace, both entered the contest. Ace is a pro at dock diving and did really well. Betty was a bit intimidated, partly by the very loud (and large) crowd watching the event and by the platform on which she was supposed to run and dive into the water. The platform was about three feet or more above the water. She did walk to the edge and consider it, but no dive for her today. (She did follow Ace in during one of their practice jumps, though.) Her wonderful adopters will be working on this and will let us know the next time she’s in an event!
