A long-term shelter dog has found the sweetest way of letting his volunteer friend know that he appreciates their days out together.
For the past year, Danielle Baughman, a volunteer at Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, has been taking Pongo the three-year-old dog out of the shelter for day trips in the local area.
In 2018, a study published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science found that just 15 minutes of one-on-one petting was enough to provide a measurable improvement to the well-being of a shelter dog.
Pongo gets a huge boost from his days out with Baughman. “They make a huge difference,” Baughman told Newsweek. “He’s a high energy dog so when he doesn’t get out for a while he has a lot of pent up energy.”
While Pongo is regularly put in play groups with other dogs, Baughman tries to take him out at least once a week. “The last trip I took him to go swimming with one of his old shelter friends who was adopted almost a year ago,” she said. “I take him to the park and hiking and sometimes I bring him to my house to play with my cat. I also signed him up for doggie day care at a local place.”
A doggie day out volunteer who helps plan events at the shelter, Baughman also promotes Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley’s residents on TikTok, posting under the handle @all_deez_animals in the hopes of finding them forever homes.
It’s there that she shared a heartwarming video from Pongo’s recent trip to the pool. In the clip, which was seen thousands of times since being posted earlier this week, Pongo made a point of coming up to the front of Baughman’s car to give her an affectionate lick to the face after a busy day out together.
She believes it’s his way of saying of showing gratitude for taking him out. “He always says thank you for our adventures,” the on-screen caption said.
“He’s such an appreciative dog,” Baughman added. “He does it everytime I take him out of his kennel and again after we finish a trip.”
Given everything he’s been through, it’s hardly a surprise that Pongo would be thankful to Baughman. “Pongo was brought to the shelter by a landlord. His tenant moved out and left Pongo behind,” Baughman said. “He gets interest from all over the country and beyond but it always falls through.”
At one point, Pongo was set to be enlisted as part of a prison program that would have seen him trained to conduct searches and other service jobs but, after four months waiting in the shelter with little progress, he ended up being put back up for adoption.
“That took several months away from him,” Baughman said. Night times in the kennels proved especially difficult for Pongo. “He hates being alone so much that he used to climb out of his kennel at night to find a dog to be with,” Baughman said. “They had to build him a special kennel for safety reasons.”
All the while, he’s struggled to get adopted. Pongo has now spent 18 months at the shelter, half his life, so when people do visit it’s exciting for him. But Baughman believes that behavior isn’t helping his adoption chances.
“He jumps like crazy and it turns people away,” she said. “But he’s just really happy to see them. He doesn’t jump like that outside of the kennel.”
That’s part of the reason why Baughman has been so determined to give Pongo a break and find a way to stimulate his mind and body in an environment away from the shelter. “I started taking him out because I focus on the dogs who need it the most. We have four dogs who have been there over 18 months and up to 4 years,” she said. That number includes Mia who previously featured on Newsweek. “The shelter becomes their home and I can’t let them live in a kennel for 20 hours a day with no outlet,” she said.
Baughman knows Pongo more than most and has a pretty good idea of the kind of home that would suit him. “He would do best with a family who will keep him busy and active or one with another dog. He is always on his best behavior when he’s with other animals,” she said. “He has a great recall which always makes life with a dog easier. He loves hiking and running.”
Pongo won’t be the perfect rescue dog overnight. “He will need someone who will be patient with him for a couple weeks,” Baughman said. “It will take him time to realize he doesn’t have to get all his energy out in short periods of time.”
While Pongo waits for a second chance at a forever home, Baughman is going to be keeping him busy, starting with an appearance on a St. Patrick’s Day float alongside Mia this Saturday.
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