We are bringing back one of our previous Tri-Cities Animal Shelter Pets of the Week because the need for her to be adopted has grown greater. We told you back in April about Juno. At that time Juno had been at the shelter for six months and was 41/2 years old. She is now ready to turn 5 and closing in on one year at TCAS.
Juno was found as a stray near the Winco in Kennewick. She had a chip that registered to an owner in Puyallup, but after multiple attempts to contact them, there was never a response. Juno is in a unique situation. She has never shown agression towards people, even being so gentle with children she ate Cheerios from the hand of a 2 year-old toddler. It’s with other animals where the concern comes in.
Juno very much needs to be the only animal in her home. She does have a high prey drive so smaller animals such as cats, would not be safe around her. She has also shown aggression towards other dogs and for that reason she has not interacted with other dogs face to face. The long stay at the shelter has unfortunately heightened those senses.
As far as people go, everyone who meets Juno falls in love with her happy-go-lucky, playful, and goofy personality. Her favorite pastimes include playing with a variety of toys in the shelter’s fenced play yards with anyone who will take her out. Her leash manners are great, and depending on her surroundings, she doesn’t even pull. She has also mastered “sit,” “shake” (with both paws), and “lay down.” Incredibly food motivated, she is very eager to please.
There are many people who would have adopted Juno because of those qualities, but they have other pets and that isn’t the optimal situation. Juno’s ideal human would be someone who understands that you’ll need to stay vigilant and hyper-aware of your surroundings to prevent any surprise interactions with off-leash dogs or the opportunity to chase a cat. If Juno didn’t have these specific restrictions, she would be quite literally the perfect dog—she makes up for anything she may lack with her companionship.
One of her charming quirks is her Pitty “Sploot,” (as seen above) where she lays down with her belly on the ground and her back legs sticking straight out—a classic move for Pitbulls! While she enjoys a good long walk from time to time, she can also happily be a couch potato with you. Juno is a true Velcro dog, following you everywhere and loving car rides. She’s so well-behaved in the car that she has gone on rides in the personal vehicles of the shelter workers.
Despite Juno having not one, not two, not three, but four news appearances, and now two radio appearances with corresponding web articles, she has continued to be overlooked for 371 days. According to our records, Juno has watched 1,423 dogs be adopted from TCAS. It is heartbreaking to see Juno watch people come in and out every day without going home with someone…