Yet Another Meeting

Lizzy's meet and greet over a week ago went very well.  Jim, the applicant, really liked her and brought his dog Wilma and his sister Karen to meet Lizzy.  Everything was great--the dogs got along, Lizzy was well behaved and allowed lots of pets from both Jim and Karen.  We thought it was a good match and Dave set up a time to do a home visit.  Meanwhile, I'd emailed Stella who had submitted an application for Lizzy just after Jim's and told her that it looked like Lizzy would be adopted.

Unfortunately for Lizzy, the home visit didn't go so well.  While Jim's home was lovely, it was small for the size dog she is and there really wasn't a good place for Lizzy to lay down (Lizzy was with Dave at the time).  She seemed very uncomfortable in the home, which is not the case when we've taken her to other homes.  And Dave learned that they don't walk the dogs regularly due to a rogue dog in the neighborhood.  Since their yard was small, he didn't think Lizzy would get the exercise she needs.  Dave and I talked it over and decided this wasn't the best home for Lizzy but that their were possibly other dogs in our group that might be a better match for Jim.  So I emailed Stella and asked if she was still interested in Lizzy.

I had a lovely conversation with Stella and was thrilled to be able to set up a meet and greet for Saturday.  It would be Lizzy's fourth in as many weeks, but I felt really good about this family and Stella admitted to having a good feeling too, despite the fact she and her family hadn't even met Lizzy yet.  The difference between this meet and greet and the others Lizzy's had?  This time, it was with her forever family. 

Stella, Leland and their daughter Renee drove down from Vermont on Saturday afternoon and ended up spending almost an hour in the yard with Lizzy.  It marked the first time Lizzy completely ignored us around other people.  Twice (in an hour!) she came over to say hello but immediately went back to the family for pets, snuggles, hugs and treats.  She showed off her tricks, often unprovoked because she learned that if she did one, she would get a treat simply for being so cute.

Stella and Leland have experience with positive training techniques and Renee has a very good sense for dogs, and even asked some good questions her parents didn't think of.  Lizzy gave lots of kisses, something she hasn't given us, and basked in all the love and attention.  Toward the end of their visit when we were discussing the next steps, Renee was genuinely sad and confused, wondering why they couldn't take Lizzy with them.

Helping to cheer Renee up, we decided to set up a time to finalize the adoption this Saturday.  We got a virtual tour as part of the home visit and will follow that up with an inspection when we get there.  We typically try to not do a home visit and adoption in the same day, to allow a 24 hour waiting time to make sure everyone is comfortable with the decision, but the family has a great property on a quiet road and we couldn't be more thrilled with the opportunity for Lizzy. 

She's been a pretty easy dog for us and we're glad that we've taken our time to find the right home.  There's been a lot of interest in her, but she's going to be a great addition to this family.