Brody: the end (and the beginning)
June 7, 2009 - Brody's is a tale of love, endurance, desperation, and frustration. You may have already been following Brody's story on our web-site. But to for those of you who are new, here's the run down.
Brody is an approximately two year old lab mix who came to us from a shelter in CO. We were told he was a charismatic, friendly fellow who never met a stranger. We quickly learned that description was entirely accurate as Brody promptly bailed out head over heels from the back of the transport vehicle just so he could get to the people (any people!) as fast as he could. Unfortunately, these antics also made it immediately apparent that Brody was favoring his right rear leg in a big way. Further inspection revealed substantial atrophy of the leg leading us to believe the injury was further up in his hip.
We were right. It seems that at some point in his past, Brody suffered a traumatic injury to his hip, leaving the head of the femur badly damaged and causing him a lot of pain. Surgery to remove the head of the femur was prescribed, along with it came a $1200.00 estimate! You might already know, but BDAR is a very small organization with an even smaller budget. We do not knowingly take in animals with these types of special needs because we simply do not have the resources to pay for them. But now that Brody was here, what could we do? We begged, and borrowed, and e-mailed, and petitioned, and raised the money! Read more about this in our other posts.
So Brody began a long recovery. During this time when we were waiting for him to heal physically, we also learned that Brody needed some time to heal emotionally. As nice as he is, and as affectionate and sweet, Brody also suffers from extreme anxiety and is hyper-sensitive to any changes in his environment. He constantly whines and circles unless someone's there to soothe and pet 
him. He barks and cries when left alone. He also howls. Long, beautiful, but somehow sad, these howls seemed to be an outlet for Brody, a manifestation of sadness, anxiety, and insecurity. As one who sings to relieve myself of stress, I could instantly relate to Brody and his howls. They sometimes broke my heart.
And they made me question: What can I do for him? How will he ever get adopted in this state? So I called behaviorists, trainers, animal communicators, and friends. We developed a prescription of love, stability, relaxation techniques and custom blended homeopathic oils for Brody. And while we waited for his leg to heal, we actively encouraged his soul to also.
Miraculously, and through no small feat of his own will, this regime seemed to work for Brody. The howling decreased substantially. Brody made friends with the other dogs; he learned to relax at night and got to roam free in the house instead of being confined to a kennel. He actually slept! His whining for attention went way down and he learned to be soothed by the sound of a voice instead of desperately seeking pets wherever he could get them. While he wasn't "cured" of his desperation, he was markedly better and much more pleasant to be around. We began to hope that someone would fall for Brody, and to believe that he could be successfully adopted.
There were some inquiries, but none of them seemed to be the right fit for Brody. A military home that could be transferred at any time with two small kids, well, Brody can be quite wild and isn't the type to tone it down around the little ones. Plus, with the stress he experiences in new situations, a home where he's likely to live the rest of his life would be a better option. A companion for an elderly dog with arthritis - probably not great either, this dog likes to play, play, play and can be very physical. Would the right match ever come along for our sweet "Hurricane Brody?"
The answer, as I'm sure you've guessed, is "yes!"
While surfing the internet one evening looking for a new dog after the death of one of his beloved companions, David Stenson happened upon our site and Brody. It was love at first sight! David and his wife own over 1,000 acres of beautifully treed land in central Wyoming. They've lived in their home for nearly 30 years. They have another lab mix, a sweet girl called Ebby, desperate for a new friend. And perhaps best of all (insert goose bumps here); the Stensons have several bodies of water on their land, within walking distance of their home, for Brody to swim in €“ the perfect prescription for a dog needing to build up strength in a leg!
So, after a long, emotional, and painful (for all of us) journey, Brody is, at long last home.
It's a victory for us as an organization and for me personally; but most of all, for a homeless puppy found wandering alone down a dirt road in the dead of winter. This love bug of a dog, this soul-bearing singer, this lover of all things feet, has touched my heart and that of so many others.
Good boy Brody.