Fun

The Story of Beau’s Best Friend

Written by: Stacie Grissom

May 8, 2013

This is a story about Beau, a lovable Pitbull/Boxer pup in Brooklyn, NY.

Beau

Beau’s story begins when his mamz, Rhiannon, adopted him from a rescue in Brooklyn.

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Rhiannon didn’t care about what breed or age of pup she got, as long as the pup got along with her cats. (And she really wanted a pup to take on runs.)

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When the rescue introduced Rhiannon to Beau, she fell for him and took him home.

But little Beau had a rough beginning. Because he was seized from a dog hoarder who kept 40+ dogs in small cages in a one-bedroom apartment, Beau was never socialized or allowed outside. The only life he knew was in his crowded cage, probably sitting in his own urine and feces all day.  All of this made Beau a nervous and sickly pup. (He suffered from Giardia, skin problems, kennel cough, among other things.) But when Rhiannon saw him for the first time, she wanted to give him a chance at a better life.


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After little Beau came home, Rhiannon came to the conclusion that Beau was probably physically abused as well because of the way he reacted to certain gestures. (Beau cowered whenever Rhiannon did something as tiny as grabbing a newspaper to swat a fly.) Every time Rhiannon took Beau outside, he would freeze up whenever he crossed the threshold, get a terrified glazed-over look in his eyes, and sit on the ground shaking uncontrollably. If Rhiannon tried to walk him away from the front door, he would plant his feet firmly and start pulling backwards.

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Rhiannon tried everything. She crate trained him, hired a trainer, set up doggie playdates with friends who had backyards– nothing made him more comfortable outside. When she tried forcing him to walk to the park at the trainer’s suggestion, Beau would pull backwards so forcefully that he made his paws bleed. Whatever Rhiannon did, there was no progress and Beau became more and more nervous. While he was relatively normal and happy inside of the house, Rhiannon noticed that Beau was starting to get depressed.

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It ended up taking Rhiannon nine months to housebreak Beau. She spent day after day cleaning up pee and poo around the house. Eventually, Beau became a teeny bit comfortable with walking halfway down the block to a rather inconvenient self-designated potty spot in front of a neighbors building. (He wouldn’t dare approach the curb.)  Rhiannon spent many days scrubbing and bleaching the sidewalk in front of her building. With Beau’s nervous stomach, it was never an easy pickup.Rhiannon and Beau would sit on her front stoop 3-4 times a day where Beau would sit there and shake uncontrollably– jumping out of his skin at every noise, person, car, truck, bicycle, baby carriage, and shopping cart that went by.  Desensitizing Beau proved an impossible feat – he wouldn’t even respond to the yummiest treats Rhiannon tried to offer him.  The only time he seemed to forget his fear for a moment, was when he saw another dog.

And that’s where Daisy came in.

Noelle

When Rhiannon saw Daisy’s profile on Petfinder, she immediately fell in love and thought she would be the perfect friend for Beau. Daisy was described as being the “hostess with the mostest” – particularly good with all the scared new dogs coming into her foster home. Rhiannon knew this was exactly what Beau needed – a well-adjusted buddy who could help teach him how to be a dog!  Daisy was also an amputee, which struck a chord with Rhiannon since she was an amputee herself. (Rhiannon lost part of her hand in an accident several years back.)

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When Beau and Daisy met, they bonded immediately.

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To this day, Beau is still terrified to go for a walk outside. However, he is much happier to have a friend, and Rhiannon was much happier to have a pup to go on walks and runs. ♥

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Ultimately, having two pups made a bit of extra work for Rhiannon. She had to take them on separate walks because Daisy would become frustrated when little Beau wouldn’t budge. But Rhiannon says the extra effort was totally worth it to cheer up Beau.

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Today, Rhiannon and her pups have an apartment with a private backyard where Beau feels safe to romp around and play with Daisy.

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Beau and Daisy love each other very much, and they snuggle in the funniest positions.

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Rhiannon likes to call it “Advanced Dog Spooning.” 😉

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A huge thanks to Rhiannon for sharing Beau and Daisy’s story. ♥ If your pup has a crazy/funny/heartwarming/awesome story, send it to [email protected]! (Be sure to send plenty of photos to tell the story!)

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Written by: Stacie Grissom

May 8, 2013

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