At around 1:00, only Gizmo had not yet had a volunteer walk; combine that with his sweet Chihuahua expression and it was a no brainer, he was my choice. He put his paws up to snuggle as I fastened his harness around him. I had to loosen it a bit, Gizmo has been at the shelter for several weeks and put on some weight. At nine years old he was not likely at the top of many potential adopters' "must have" lists.
We began our outing in the exercise yard with the standard sniffing, exploring, taking care of business and watching other dogs walking by. After about ten minutes it seemed like a good time to start our walk. Like most little dogs Gizmo is very good on the leash and really enjoys sniffing and exploring wherever you take him. We did a short walk into the desert area, then back around the hedges near the building; sometimes very small dogs seem to like these small darker areas.
To finish our walk, I wanted to try one more visit to the exercise yard to see how Gizmo was at more structured obedience. This was a different yard so I let him sniff around for a few minutes. As I was about to move to the other part of the yard to try him at "come", he went racing to the gate and began pawing at it. He was ready to leave, NOW. I tried coaxing him with treats, most dogs would like their outings to last all day, Gizmo looked at me pleadingly, he was ready to go.
I put him back in his harness thinking that we could do more of a regular walk. Gizmo did not want a walk, he wanted to go back into the shelter. Still undeterred, I thought that I could let him walk around some of the common areas inside if they were available or, take him to a get acquainted room. Gizmo had other plans. He trotted straight to the front desk. The staff person greeted me with " Someone is here to adopt Gizmo". Animals will never cease to amaze me. I naturally assumed that she had spent considerable time getting to know Gizmo, etc. and that he had simply picked up her scent; but I do not think that this was the case. When the staff person asked her if she wanted to take Gizmo for a walk, she said she had not known that this was allowed, but, yes, she would love to walk him.
Gizmo's wonderful new life will include, 15 acres to explore in the company of another dog, cats and horses plus two people who already love him. Not bad for this sweet little guy.
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