Rescue Tail / Molly

By Tara McFarland

Fight, Flight, Fret and Freeze. These four F’s refer to an animal’s fear reactions. When we first met Molly she was living underneath a trailer in a local Marathon trailer park. Neighbors stated that the previous owners had simply vacated their home two months prior and left her behind. Afraid of the world, having her trust completely broken by the only family she ever knew, she lived in fear, frightened and alone day after day. The neighbors in the park provided her food and water, and tried to coax her out from her hiding spot. Yet their efforts were only met with fear, as she remained frozen beneath the trailer.

When our Marathon Campus received the call for help we found a little Jack Russell Terrier mix, eyes wide, shaking uncontrollably under the trailer. Her fear was so intense the little girl could not move. Although we did our best to comfort and reassure her that she was being rescued, the little dog was simply too frightened to trust. Our Officer remained composed and patient, until she was finally able to reach the little dog and safely bring her to our shelter.

We affectionately named her Molly, and our compassionate staff and volunteers worked relentlessly to form a bond through trust with her. However hard we tried, though, she remained completely frozen from head to tail anytime she was pet or touched. Although she never showed any other form of the four F’s, her fear remained paralyzing. Working with a fearful dog requires an extraordinary amount of time, trust and patience. Yet shortly after her arrival at our Marathon Campus, we began to foster our shelter animals as the world abruptly changed in March.

Maria had been a volunteer at both our Key West and Marathon Campuses specializing in socializing fearful or shy animals. She was drawn to the ones that needed her most. Although they might shy away from her, her soft voice, gentle touch, determination and patience always seemed to work like magic in the most challenging cases. When Maria arrived to help foster, we knew she was the best fit for Molly.

For two months, while Maria and her husband stayed home, they worked with Molly day by day, hour by hour, painstakingly building an unbreakable bond of trust. The frozen dog we met that day in the trailer park would ultimately be going for walks, accepting touch and even playing with their second foster dog, Paddington the Poodle. Her hard wide gaze filled with fear was replaced by soft brown eyes full of love for her new family that took her in with open arms. When it came time to welcome our foster animals back to the shelter, they knew both Molly and Paddington were there to stay for good.

Being a part of a transformation like Molly’s is nothing short of an honor. Every single animal that enters our shelter is an individual, and each one has a story and a need. There is no black and white in shelter life, it is a constantly changing adaptation to the needs of each pet we meet. We continue to give our all, not to the collective, but to each individual animal we house at our shelters, for as long as it takes to find every single one their furrever family. By adopting from our shelter you are giving an animal a second, or sometimes third or fourth chance at living a happy, loving, fear-free life. You can be a part of our lifesaving mission by visiting us at fkspca.org/adopt and bringing a shelter pet from Key West or Marathon into your home and heart. Thank you!