Rocky Kanaka, a volunteer in fostering dogs, had handled countless dogs already in his life but dealing with a terrified dog who would never wag his tail was new for him. The dog’s name was Blossom, and he was rescued and brought to the shelter along with 150 other dogs. Nobody knew what he had experienced before, but for Blossom not to move his tail ever, that must have been a not-so-good memory.
Kanaka could not afford to see Blossom trembled in fear all the time, so he took Blossom home and fostered him. When they arrived home, Kanaka proved that Blossom was indeed afraid of everything – from hiding under the furniture for how many days down to feeling the grass and sunlight. Just like what Kanaka shared with The Dodo, Blossom did not know how to be a dog.
Kanaka’s way of making Blossom feel safe was simple: just by not forcing him for anything at all. He wanted to give Blossom all the time she needed because Kanaka believed that it was through that way that Blossom would loosen up. Since Blossom was always under the table and would only come out for bathroom breaks, Kanaka made a beautiful tent for Blossom. And that was the start of a lot of firsts for Blossom.
Blossom allowed his foster Dad to hand feed her for the first time. Not only that, for Blossom also started to drink from the water bowl just like what she saw from the other dogs in the house. After that, Blossom did something unexpected again. That was when she jumped onto the couch to be beside her foster Dad after months of having no physical contact.
One day, the moment Kanaka had been waiting for finally happened. Blossom started running around and wagging her tail, and that made Kanaka very happy. It might have taken him three months to win Blossom’s heart, but for Kanaka, it was worth the wait.
As sad as it might have been, Kanaka’s only role was to prepare Blossom for her forever parent and home. He always had to make room for more untrained animals, so even if it was out of his will, he had to entrust Blossom to her new mother, Brittany. Brittany was grateful to Kanaka for fostering Blossom well. Now, the two are happily living together.
Watch the video below to see how Blossom turned out to be well-blossomed.
Source: The Dodo via Youtube
