Kris Robinson was sitting in the Senatobia-Tate County Animal Shelter’s main office when she noticed someone strolling across the yard. A young man was crossing the lawn, closely followed by a dog.
“He instructed the dog to stay outside, and she simply sat down,” Robinson, the shelter’s interim director, told The Dodo. “He came in and said, ‘Could you please take my dog?’”
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
Robinson said that the shelter was filled, but she could sense the teen needed assistance — and a little luck. “He bent his head and murmured, ‘I don’t have a place to live.’” I’m now living under a bridge, and I just cannot afford to care for her… I hope she stays when I go to look for employment, and so far she has been there when I return, but I’m really scared about her.”
Robinson noticed how connected the puppy, Jada, was to her father, so she grabbed his information and had him fill out a relinquishment form. “She really clung to him, he was kind of stepping around, and she was clinging to his leg,” Robinson said. “She’d get real close to him and sit down — she was scared.”
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
Robinson noticed the adolescent wiping his face as he walked away from the shelter, where he had left a bag of dog food. Robinson took Jada into the office to relax, but she was clearly perplexed as to why her father wasn’t present.
“She got on one of the chairs and peered out the window,” Robinson explained. “I walked in the back to clean, and when I looked on her, she was simply resting there with her meal.”
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
The next day, Jada felt more at ease with Robinson, but Robinson realized that no one could ever replace Jada’s father. She decided to share the dog’s tale on Facebook in order to gain some community support. But she had no idea how much attention her post would receive.
“I just wanted to highlight what this child did and his character,” Robinson explained. “He didn’t ask for anything — he simply wanted to make sure [Jada] was well.”
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
Soon, requests to foster the puppy came in from all across the country, but Robinson felt they could do better.
Robinson contacted a nearby family, who offered to house both the teen and his dog, but the young man was hesitant to accept the offer. “I had contacted him and told him, ‘Look, these folks want to assist you,’” Robinson explained. “‘What do you mean?’ he asked. Do they plan on adopting her? ‘May I see her first?’ ‘No, buddy, they want to help you,’ I responded.
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
When the teen returned to the shelter with the family to pick up Jada, their reunion was ecstatic.
“She charged up to him and leapt on him,” Robinson explained. “He was simply adoring her with a big ol’ smile on his face.”
CREDIT: SENATOBIA-TATE COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER
Jada and her father have finally found a place to call home – together. Jada is receiving the medical attention she requires, and the youngster is able to concentrate on his studies.
“He’s finishing up high school, and then he’s going to take some classes at a local municipal college and go to the dentist – things he’s never done before,” Robinson explained.
Robinson is overjoyed that there is now one less dog at the shelter and one less child on the street.
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