Digby & Coco
In March of this year we said goodby to one of our alums, Digby. One would never be able to tell this boy was 18 years old because his energy never seemed to end. From endless games of fetch, long walks, and days swimming at the lake Digby couldn’t be stopped.
In 2011, Digby was surrendered to HSTT when his owner’s health took an unfortunate turn and he was left in the care of a friend. Unbeknownst to the family, Digby was surrendered to the shelter for adoption. He was 9 years old.
A friend of the family noticed him on the HSTT website and alerted Jennifer and her family. They quickly responded and ended up taking him home shortly after that. Even at 9 years old he still had some basic commands to learn.
“Digby wanted to learn and please us…His capacity to learn, even at an advanced age was amazing!! Old dogs DO learn new tricks”
Digby had no problem making himself at home and was a part of the family for 9 additional years.
In September 2019, the family decided it was time to add a new furry member to the family to accompany Digby. They reached out to family friend and HSTT Adoption Specialist Lori Fissel saying they were interested in another four legged companion.
And then came Coco. Coco was surrendered alongside his brother Rex when their owners were no longer able to care for them. Jennifer came across his photos on Instagram and it was love at first sight. The family stopped in to meet him and it was all history.
“The moment that we knew he needed to become our new family member, was when Coco started playing “soccer” – kicking a ball in the HSTT large activity/adoption room”
Digby helped Coco to adjust to the new home and showed him the way. Once in his new home, Jennifer and her family began to realize that Coco was trained using Spanish commands. The family took this into consideration when adopting him and have gone to the extent of learning some Spanish commands themselves to work with Coco on his training.
“We trusted that he was a great dog & we could work with him for training. We are now learning Spanish. Coco is picking up English faster than we could have imagined! Who would have ever guessed we’d have a bilingual dog? It’s Fantastic!”
To be honest, we’re not quite sure who lucked out more: Digby and Coco for a family that went to all ends and odds to work with them and help them adjust or Jennifer and her family for adopting some pretty cool dogs.
Our hearts go out to Digby’s family in these tough times. We appreciate everything that you have done to support HSTT and our alums.
“His presence in our family was a daily reminder that life is a gift, not to be taken for granted.”
