The Domino Effect

30/12/2020

Happy Holidays, everyone!

01/12/2020

Apparently, Domino loves snow! But not as much as he loves his family. 🥰

08/11/2020

Domino celebrated his first-ever birthday today! One year ago, he was found eating trash at a Burger King. Today, he’s drowning in treats, toys, clothes, playtime, birthday songs, and a lot of love.

Who could ask for more? Happy birthday, Domino!

26/08/2020

Domino’s adopter says these days, he’s always sleeping! Can you imagine?! Turns out all he needed was a family of his own who gave him the security and boundaries he needed, and now he’s just... a normal dog!

From Lori, his new mom: “Honestly, he can’t get any better. He knows he’s home and he’s living the sweet life. ❤️❤️❤️”

12/08/2020

The updates are gonna be fewer and farther between, but here’s a glimpse of your wild crazy boy living his best life!

11/07/2020

Domino’s story made it on the Best Friends Animal Society YouTube show!!! Check it out - starts about 2:25 into the video!

We’re barking about who stole Billie Eilish’s heart, pets who are not social distancing, and one dog’s rescue story that will restore your faith in humanity....

19/06/2020

Soaking up some sun!

07/06/2020

Living the good life!

07/05/2020

After days of stressful transport, Domino has officially arrived at his new home!!! And he just found out that he gets two kids of his very own, after spending just about every leash walk trying to find some to play with. Congratulations, buddy, enjoy!

05/05/2020

The time has finally come for an update! (If you donated to Domino's Last Chance, there is a financial update on the fundraiser too with receipts!)

Domino has found his forever family!!! Or rather, Niagara Dog Rescue sifted through tons of applications to find it for him! It's been 6 long months of hard work and commitment by a bunch of people, including of course his guardian angel Heather Crane of Sea Dog Animal Training, who has taken amazing care of him for almost 5 months. He finally graduated from her program this morning when Becky and I picked him up to take him to transport. We got to see him throwing around his favorite ball and competing with Heather's personal dog for our attention. It is truly phenomenal to see the change in Domino and witness the amount of work Heather has put in!

Domino got on transport here in Texas and will be arriving in Canada on Thursday, where his forever family waits. He will be the only pet, but not the only kid - he will *finally* have a human brother and sister. They're an active family who will be dedicated to Domino's continual training. They have already been collecting the kids' old soccer balls for him to pop (his favorite activity), and his new mom has already been ordering everything off Amazon to spoil him rotten!

I almost resigned to Domino's inevitable euthanasia multiple times since finding him last November. It seemed impossible to find anyone who would be willing to put in the work a traumatized dog would require. I'll be forever grateful to all the people who came together to show Domino that his life was worth it. Because he really, truly is worth it.

Updates from his new family to come! 🥰

18/02/2020

Check out Domino meeting a brand new dog! Looks like he had a blast 😂

12/02/2020

This goofy boy gets to celebrate tonight because he has OFFICIALLY cut ties with Harris County Animal Shelter!!!!

Niagara Dog Rescue has tagged him, and he will be finding a new home in Canada!

Special thanks to everyone who loved and believed in him, shared his story, donated toward his care and training, and helped network. And obviously, an enormous thanks to Heather, who has been his lifeline these past couple months, keeping him out of the shelter and training him for his future family.

I can’t wait to see what his future holds! ❤️ Updates will continue on here.

04/02/2020

😮

Once labeled “animal aggressive,” Domino works diligently with positive reinforcement training to shake his label and earn himself a plate in a loving home. ...

03/02/2020

From Heather, Domino’s trainer:

“Domino is showing absolutely no indicators of aggression so I decided to take the muzzle off. He’s been out with my three dogs for the last hour without any issue whatsoever. If someone growls at him for being too forward, he looks at me like “why are they being so rude? I just want to play!” and then he moves on and goes back to playing with his ball or noodle toy. Domino is thriving and it’s just so amazing to see. I can’t wait for you to come see him again.”

03/02/2020

Extra time with his trainer has brought him to a point where... he’s acting like a normal dog who was never labeled “animal aggressive”!

His amazing trainer is keeping him muzzled for now during these playtimes for everyone’s safety, but once he builds up more confidence, we will be sharing a video soon without it! Truthfully, he has not shown any aggression toward other dogs in quite some time now. She is moving slowly with these introductions due to her schedule, not his behavior.

From Heather: “Before I started recording, he was even playing with Lars! Lars wasn’t too sure about it, but Domino was confident their relationship was ready for play 😂”

PS: that was Riley telling him she didn’t want to play - not Domino growling. He is ready to make some friends!

Domino learned a voluntary muzzle behavior prior to shared space socialization off leash due to his previous history of being fearful and exhibiting some rea...

02/02/2020

“Hi everyone! Remember me? I’m having a blast with my trainer and learning how to be a good boy more and more every day. I like learning, but I’m ready to put it all to good use and meet my forever family! Is it you??” 😍

Don’t miss out on this well-trained boy!

25/01/2020

Domino’s not sure why anyone would want his blood, but he’s more than happy to give it. In other news, he’s confirmed heartworm negative! He celebrated by crunching on an empty water bottle (video in comments).

23/01/2020

Sent from Heather. He found a new ball and is delighted to learn that it squeaks.

On drives, I keep a squeaky tennis ball in the back for him, and he just chills back there squeaking it like this the whole time. Don’t you want a dog who knows how to entertain himself?!

22/01/2020

Check out this article from the Asbury Park Press that features Domino!

Caleb Schaffer has found a calling in dog rescue. He's on a mission to find a home for one stray in particular.

20/01/2020

When I took Domino to his photoshoot yesterday, I was honestly shocked at how much he has mastered his commands since last time I saw him. Firstly, I was shocked that he wore a hoodie and hat for most of our time together without any issue whatsoever (more than I can say for my dogs!). I had some extra time with him before dropping him back off with his trainer, so we went on a half hour walk. The whole time I tested out his “wait” and “leave it” commands. He walked right beside me with the leash slack for almost the whole walk. When he showed interest in something, like a group of kids (boy does he love kids), I just told him to “leave it” a few times and he did, without protest. Afterwards, his trainer, Heather, and I stood talking for about 15 minutes, and he calmly stood next to us - did not pull on the leash once. (We did the same thing about a week ago and he got impatient after a few minutes and started playing tug of war with the leash, until she had to step in to stop him.)

Heather agreed that he seems to have made a breakthrough with his training over the last couple days. At this point, I really think as long as potential adopters can learn and implement the simple techniques Heather has been using, he will be someone’s perfect dog. I’ve never worked this hard on placing a dog, and it’s because I know how much he deserves it. You cannot help falling in love with him!!

20/01/2020

Behold the results of Domino’s professional photoshoot today! He’s a looker 😍

19/01/2020

Heading to Domino’s photoshoot, and he’s practicing his pose.

19/01/2020

Heather Crane of Sea Dog Animal Training has been an absolutely crucial part of Domino’s story. Shout out to her for swooping in to save him from death row and going the extra mile, over and over and over again, to prepare him for his forever home!

19/01/2020

This sweet-hearted guy is up for adoption, and he’s looking for his perfect family! Read his full story under the “About” section, and e-mail [email protected] to apply.

19/01/2020

19/01/2020

19/01/2020