Kingsley Finds His Forever Home

In late April, I wrote this post about a beautiful white shepherd puppy named Kingsley, who's owners realized he was too much for them to handle, and offered him to me to rehome. During that time I would pick up Kingsley from his former owner's home, bring him over to play with Koa, to practice some basic training, and to take walks and even a brief hike. I took him to get neutered and spammed my best friend Kelsey, who had agreed to adopt him, with photos and videos of him frolicking awkwardly, his too-long limbs flailing. Kelsey is notoriously goofy, and I told her, "This is definitely your dog."

Kingsley with his new roommate, Kumbu, in Portland, OR

Well last weekend, I finally loaded up Kingsley's enormous crate in the back of my tiny two-seat car, crammed Kingsley and Koa into the front seat (much to Koa's displeasure) and we made the seven hour drive from Monrovia to Sebastopol, where my family lives, and where Kelsey was also visiting her family. The drive was far from comfortable for any of us — Koa curled up on the floorboard beneath the passenger seat and Kingsley sprawled out with his head in my lap. When I stopped to get food, he attempted to climb across me to stick his snout into the drive through window, and when we got out of the car for a potty break, big tufts of white fluff billowed out of my car and off of my clothing.

As I got closer Kelsey texted me, "Close??? I am so ready to be a mom!" And even though I didn't arrive at my mom's house until around 9:45pm, she and her boyfriend immediately came over to meet her big, gangly baby. Kingsley was busily investigating this fascinating new environment, but as Kelsey came over and sat on the floor to meet him, he pranced over to her and leaned against her in an uncharacteristically familiar way for a usually shy and cautious pup.


The next morning we took both dogs out for a hike, and he did awesome with Kelsey. I gave her a clicker and she practiced clicking and treating him for voluntary eye contact and staying beside her. When Koa and I left, he did let out a few distressed cries, trying to follow us at first, but by our last evening in town it was clear that they had developed a bond. We gathered at my mom's house to barbecue,  and after several attempts at sticking his long snout into everyone's plates, and a few failed attempts to get a sleepy Koa to play with him, Kingsley settled down right beside Kelsey, looking more settled and at ease than I'd ever seen him before.




Yesterday, Kelsey texted me again. "Kingsley is the best dog ever," she told me, "He's perfect."