Rosie

Dave received a call one night about a stray dog on our church property. It was living behind a gated area of the parking lot where we park the trailers that store the scouting equipment. Since Dave is the Young Men's President and has the keys to that area, he got the call. We were worried about the poor dog freezing overnight. We set out with a kennel, some treats and a flashlight. After chasing the scared dog around the parking lot a few times, we called our neighbors who have experience rescuing dogs. Some of our other neighbors showed up because they had been feeding the dog for a few days and were worried about her. So, the seven of us chased her around for 2 hours until she finally got worn out and we were able to get her in the kennel. Over the course of the 2 hours, we named her Rosie. Rosie slept in our garage that night and I sat with her for awhile to try to get her used to people (she was still very terrified) and I got attached. I took her to the local shelter the next day to see if her owner would claim her. I called regularly to check on her and  stopped by to see her. Whenever people were nearby, she barked incessantly and shook all over and sometimes peed. After a week and she hadn't been claimed, I decided to make it my project to socialize her. 

On my first trip to the shelter, I didn't have high expectations. I planned on just sitting on the floor with her for an hour or so and throwing treats at her and hopefully having her get to the point where she wouldn't be shaking all over. I waited in the visiting room for her. A man entered, holding her in his arms. I was amazed that he had gotten her to allow him to do that since she was so terrified of people. He handed her to me. I didn't think it was a good idea, but I had a dog in my face, so I put out my hands to take her. She peed on me and then bit me. The bite became infected, my thumb swelled as big as it possibly could, and I had to see a doctor immediately and get antibiotics. 

I became a little less attached to Rosie after that (and very upset with the shelter staff). Thankfully, my mom saw this reward poster and Rosie/Lady was home within a day!