A shelter dog who has spent over a year without a home, having come close to being euthanized, has found companionship in an unexpected place.
When Jasmin, from Milwaukee, agreed to foster Percy the 5-year-old bully mix through the rescue Olyver & Co. back in February, she did so knowing he came with his own unique baggage and backstory.
“Percy was brought to our local pound over a year ago. He was at risk of being euthanized because he was showing signs of aggression,” Jasmin told Newsweek.
“A local rescue pulled him and worked on rehabbing him for about six months before he was ready to be put up for adoption. He was then adopted and they did a foster to adopt situation and they returned him after 48 hours.”
Jasmin was determined to provide Percy with the stability that had been missing from his life up until that point. In doing so, she hoped that the sweet pup she knew he was, deep down inside, would come to the fore. She was right.
“He’s been with us now for over six months and is doing fantastic and is a supereasy dog to care for,” Jasmin said.
A little love can go a long way with a shelter dog. One study published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science back in 2018 suggested just 15 minutes of one-on-one petting was enough to boost the well-being of a shelter dog.
Jasmin deserves much of the credit for providing Percy with some of that love and tenderness—but she is not alone in offering some affectionate support.
As a video posted to her TikTok, @jazarooster, shows, Percy has found love from a surprising source: Jasmin’s new foster kitten Bench.
“Bench was found with his four sisters under a porch. It took his trappers days to catch all five, but, thankfully, they were able to,” Jasmin said. “All four of his sisters have all been adopted, and poor little Benchy is the last one.”
Fostered through Ragged Claws Rescue over the summer, Bench had moved foster homes twice before coming into Jasmin’s care. Though it was a gradual process, Jasmin took the time to introduce Percy to Bench. It was love at first sight.
“Bench was obsessed with him,” Jasmin said. It is not entirely uncommon for cats and dogs to live in harmony. A 2020 analysis, published in the journal PLOS ONE, in which 1,270 pet owners with both a cat and dog were quizzed on their pets’ daily habits, revealed that the majority were able to coexist and even enjoyed each other’s company.
The study found over 64 percent of the cats and dogs living together also played together, while 20.8 percent even ate alongside one another.
Percy and Bench go one step further than that: they cuddle together … constantly. Jasmin said that is a little unusual. “They are both just incredibly cuddly,” she said. “But our resident pets aren’t necessarily cuddly back, so I think, when Bench realized that Percy would cuddle with him, he became super interested in him.”
An affectionate friendship has developed. One that has helped both foster pets adjust to their new surroundings. “Percy is still learning how to play with Bench since he’s so small, but he’s very gentle and just lets Bench rub up on him,” Jasmin said.
Though, in an ideal world, it would be great to see Percy and Bench get adopted together, Jasmin said she knows that is not always how these things work.
“Bench is required to go to a home with another cat. He’s still only 5 months, so we require that he be adopted with another kitten or cat under 5 years old,” she said. “Bench would do great in literally any home, kids, cats, dogs; he’s awesome and not picky! I would love him to end up with a big family because he’s a cuddle monster.”
After a year of difficulties, Jasmin is hopeful their experience together can help Percy find the loving forever home he so desperately deserves.
“Percy loves to play with other dogs, but would be OK in a home as an only dog, too,” she said. “If he is adopted to a home with another dog, it would need to be the right fit. He is definitely an alpha male. I don’t want him going to a home with kids under 12. He gets too playful with younger kids and doesn’t know how to play gently with them.”
Crate-trained, though more inclined to cuddle than go on big walks, like Bench, Percy is available for adoption now. Anyone wishing to register an interest should contact Jasmin.
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