Gracie is a three year old Tennessee farm dog and if anything else, a survivor. She was found last winter, pregnant, wounded and in fear of everything. When her owner, Cori, rescued her from the shelter, she was undergoing treatment for heartworms and was scheduled to have her leg amputated. Cori decided against the amputation and took her to hydrotherapy. After having her for a month, Cori also realized that Gracie suffered from separation anxiety. Whenever Cori left, Gracie would urinate in her crate and eat her toys, which lead to numerous trips to the ER. With the encouragement from her vet, Cori created a routine for Gracie so that it wouldn’t be a surprise when she left for work. Cori also made sure she always carried her keys around the house in order for Gracie to get comfortable with the sound. After months of conditioning, Gracie began to evolve, “Every day she has grown stronger and more independent, but I had to teach her how to be independent. I couldn’t pet her when she cried for attention; I had to ignore her when she would nudge my hand with her nose. I knew nothing about separation anxiety going into this. It’s important to educate yourself, before you bring in a shelter dog. It took a lot of patience, patience that I didn’t know I had. But the journey was so worth it to see where she is now: happy, healthy, independent and ready to help the world.”

Edited by Kim Bellier