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I don't normally have much to say when I post an image but I'm making an exception in this case. This is Shay and she is a lucky dog. I found her through an internet search while looking for a dog that needed rescue. She was in a small town Animal Control facility. My wife and I drove 125 miles to get there and what we found was horrendous. She was penned outside in a mud pit, with no shelter, at an old lady's house. Apparently that is their idea of animal control. She was backed into a corner of the pen and was being dominated by the others in the pen with her. She was filthy, scared, and starving. Although Shay did not match the description given in any way, and was not what we were looking for, we couldn't leave her there like that. We gave the old woman a grand total of $10 and brought her home. We fed her as soon as we got home and she was so hungry that she was choking herself trying to get the food down. And scared? If my wife opened the oven she would squirt on the floor and run. If I wadded up a piece of paper she would squirt on the floor and run. It was sad. She had clearly been beaten and I know that a fly swatter was one of the tools used on her. To this day, even though she knows I won't hurt her, if I pick one up she is immediately fearful and on point. I'll call her to me and get her to smell the swatter and she calms down but the fear of them is still with her. It took about a year for Shay's full personality to come out and when it did she became quite the dog. We've had her for about 5 years now and as you can see there is no fear in those eyes anymore. I'm sharing this story with the hope that those who read it will consider rescue when looking for a new friend. There are way too many out there with Shay's story that need help - make them lucky dogs too -