VHS Adoption Spotlight

I DIDN'T THINK I WANTED A DOG UNTIL I MET ZOEY."

ZOEY

VHS ADOPTION SPOTLIGHT

Newburgh's Paula Stein is a lifelong animal lover. She grew up with cats and dogs at home in New Jersey before eventually settling in the tri-state where she owned horses for a period of time on a 14-acre property out in Lynnville. A longtime VHS volunteer, Stein has primarily worked with cats at the shelter and often fosters kittens - which makes sense as she's used to caring for them. In fact, she and her husband share their residence with four felines. But recently Stein found herself taking an interest in a particular dog at the shelter while she was assisting with the Mutts Morning Out program. She couldn't help but notice Zoey, an unusually quiet terrier mix who seemed unaffected by the excitement of it all. Stein, naturally, became very curious. "After two weeks of watching her I asked about her story," she says. "They said she'd been adopted twice and returned. She seemed so nice - but then I got her out in Garvin Park and she was just as rambunctious as all the other dogs. But she was so sweet and I know you can overcome those behaviors if you work at it and settle them down."

In the following weeks, Stein spent time with Zoey at the shelter, walking her regularly and even taking her for car rides to Rural King. Finally, she took her home for a meet & greet with the cats - which went better than expected. "I thought I must be crazy to do that but she was ok," Stein says. "I had to sit on her a little bit to calm her - she's 11 months old and still got puppy brain." The next logical step was fostering Zoey - but first Stein had to convince her husband to go along with it. He was resistant but gave in and quickly formed a bond with the couple's new furry roommate. "Zoey won him over just like she did me - even the cats started coming around to her. After she'd been in the house for awhile I didn't have any problem getting my husband to agree to adopt to her."

Stein and her husband signed the adoption papers back in mid-May, making Zoey an official member of the family. And her behavior's only been improving ever since. "We got her enrolled in obedience classes - she's super smart," Stein notes. Ultimately, the plan is for Zoey to become a service animal of some sort. "I really think she's got some hound in her - she follows her nose like a search & rescue kind of dog," Stein explains. "The other goal is for her to go into hospice or nursing homes and be a comfort dog because she gives me and others a lot of joy. I didn't think I wanted a dog until I met Zoey."