Ra is still available for adoption! If you are interested in meeting him or other currently adoptable animals, visit the Seattle Animal Shelter adoption portal. To help animals in need like Ra, please consider making a valuable donation to the Seattle Animal Shelter Foundation.
_________
If there’s something that can dim Ra’s adorable smile, this sweet bully boy hasn’t come across it yet. And considering the challenges he’s faced, that’s saying a lot.
Ra’s journey to finding his forever family has been a bit bumpy. The Seattle Animal Shelter was Ra’s home when he was a puppy, and again at 3 years old after an owner surrender. And unfortunately, another challenge was coming his way.
In March 2022, Ra needed a break from shelter life. For some dogs, the noise and activity can be mentally taxing, and Ra was thriving less over time. SAS put out a call for foster homes for some of their animals, and Devin Reynolds and Kelly Knickerbocker of Seattle were in the perfect position to help.
The two had just said goodbye to their second dog in four years (both pit bulls, Diego and Jersey), and they missed the daily presence but weren’t fully ready to recommit. “Because we knew fostering would be temporary, we thought, we can help in this way, we can provide a dog with support and love while they are looking for a forever family,” Kelly said. They met a couple of pups but Ra was the standout.
“When we took him out for a little walk he had the ear-to-ear bully breed smile, something we fall for 100 percent of the time,” Kelly said. “He was so happy to be out and about. We thought he could benefit from being outside of the shelter.”
So off he went, to a home full of physical and mental stimulation, which is just what he needed. Right off the bat, he was “a little adventure guy,” going on three-mile-long runs with Devin, where he picked up directionality easily, and car trips, but also loving sunning in a grassy patch in the yard.
“He’s so amped on life,” Kelly said. “He is as excited to wake up as he is about ending the day.”
But then, he started showing signs that something was definitely not right.
“It turned out he had a piece of rubber Kong in his intestine,” Devin said. “We kept noticing runny stool, and we figured he was anxious from all the change in his life. We added some pumpkin to his food to (help), that seemed to trigger vomiting and diarrhea. We had to take him to Animal Medical Center for evaluation.”
They took Ra in on a Wednesday and were sent home with some instructions to try to fix him up, but by Friday it was worse. They took Ra back and when the clinic did an ultrasound, they found the obstruction.
The doctor advised that Ra needed immediate surgery. Though it was an expensive treatment with a long recovery time, there was no other option in the minds of Devin and Kelly and Seattle Animal Shelter.
“We felt very supported and were so grateful to have access to the SASF support during Ra’s time of need,” Kelly said. “It made a huge difference in Ra’s life, and probably saved it.”
Ra needed two weeks of home care and bed rest after his surgery, something Devin, a former vet tech, and Kelly were serendipitously prepared for. They had spent months caring for Jersey (their pet who died in February 2022) when she was sick with cancer, and were well-versed in how to support Ra. While they had come into fostering with the expectation they wouldn’t be back in this situation so soon, they found a silver lining.
“It wasn’t what we were signing up for, but it gave us an opportunity to bond with Ra. It engendered more trust,” Kelly said.
As Ra recovered, they started helping him get out some energy by doing “nose work” with him by scattering kibble around, and found he responded very well to it. They got him a fun activity mat to encourage even more mental engagement.
And it wasn’t long before Ra started making his way back to his old playful self.
“If you didn’t know (he’d had surgery), you wouldn’t know,” Devin said. “He’s doing zoomies around the back yard.”
Ultimately, Devin and Kelly just want this wonderful boy to be able to fulfill his potential by finding the perfect person or family.
“He has amazing potential to be a wonderful family member,” Kelly said. “The support we got allows him to ultimately make it to the place where he is with the forever people who he deserves. It would not have been possible if he hadn’t made it through that traumatic experience.”
Thankfully, Ra won’t ever have to worry about that.