Long-time resident Anna Gets Her Forever Home

Anna had been at Sumter County Animal Services for well over a year when Masyn Fender, an Animal Control Technician, decided to foster her. A friend of Masyn's visited, met Anna, and the rest is history as they say. The two immediately bonded and now Anna has her furever home.

"Anna was declining drastically due to being the longest resident and wondering why everyone would walk past her with no interest," Fender said. "My fellow roommates and I decided to take the risk and foster Anna to see how she would be in a home environment. Wow! Anna adjusted greatly as we allowed her three days to decompress in her kennel, which is her safe space before allowing her to meet the other residents of the house. She instantly took to the other animals."

Fender explains that they had Anna for about two weeks when a very close friend of ours met Anna and became extremely bonded with her. The friend then adopted Anna, giving her the home she desperately needed.

"For the two weeks we had Anna, we were able to find out what she likes and doesn't like, we were able to build a connection with her unlike we could at the shelter due to high amount of stress," Fender added.

Despite trying to provide animals with as much human interaction as possible and providing play time with other dogs, the kennel life is difficult for domesticated dogs. They want that loving home and companionship, and as each day passes, many dogs do suffer mentally. Fostering helps dogs mentally as it provides them a break from the kennel life. People often see these dogs in a home setting rather than a kennel setting, which is a truer indication of the pet they can be.

There are many cats and dogs looking for their furever homes. If you are looking to adopt or foster, please visit www.sumtercountyfl.gov/Animals.