Moonshine

You get accustomed to walking through the dog area looking for purple tags and notes indicating which dogs have not yet had a volunteer walk. I was casually wandering along when Moonshine brought me to a halt. He is a seven year old "puppy" Shih Tzu who, if he were not already cute enough, had been recently clipped and groomed and was sporting an Army khaki jacket zipped up the back. The cutie dancing on the right is a look-a-like; the real Moonshine is on the left. When I returned to his kennel with a small collar and leash he was already wiggling around in anticipation. I finally got him to hold still long enough for the collar and we set off.

We got about a third of the way down the hall and Moonshine spotted his first pal on the staff, he immediately went up on his hind legs and started jumping and dancing - just like the little dog on the right. This is the first time I have seen a dog balance on hind legs long enough to actually jump around and dance! After lots of laughing and petting we made it about another 20 feet, Moonshine found more staff buddies and the show resumed. He could have happily spent the rest of the day there but the staff had work to do. Once we were outside, Moonshine decided the jacket had to go so he rolled onto his back and by kicking his feet in the air madly, managed to scoot all the way down the walkway. A busload of special needs kids was unloading and they thought this was just about the best welcome ever! The jacket has a sturdy zipper, and since this was his first volunteer walk of the day, the exercise yard beckoned; Moonshine took care of business and we continued our walk.

Moonshine sits for treats and is just wonderful on the leash. He bounces along enjoying himself but he does seem to prefer sidewalks to the dirt paths out in the desert area. As we came back toward the shelter he made it clear that he wanted to go back to see the staff. He actually pulled a little on the leash to get inside to them. Moonshine has been at the shelter for a few weeks now and has formed very strong bonds with the staff. After pets and hugs from the staff, we made our way back to his kennel. He was just fine about going in and making himself at home. He is a little dog that will be totally devoted to his next family, according to his profile, he even likes cats.