Jessica became familiar with SGVHS when she brought a bird with a broken leg to the shelter to care for. Then years later, when her family lost their beloved dog of 11 years, Fred, it took a lot of time to mourn him, but eventually Jessica started browsing the shelter’s social media and came across Bailey—a super sweet Pitbull mix girl who had been at the shelter and was overlooked for nearly 2 years!
Jessica says it broke her heart reading the story about long term resident Bailey, so she decided to make an appointment for the family to meet her. When they first saw Bailey, Jessica says she felt a bit of apprehension because of Bailey’s look and size, but immediately felt comfortable as soon as they got close to Bailey because she was so “lovable and friendly”.
When they first brought her home, Bailey was a little bit fearful of her new environment. “She would walk with her head down and her eyes looking up!” Jessica says. But it only took a few short weeks for Bailey to become comfortable and a beloved part of the family. Bailey was so well-behaved and became a total cuddle bug. The family felt compelled to change Bailey’s name to “Happy” because she is so happy and in turn made the family happy as well!
Happy continues to enrich the family’s lives in countless ways. They laugh at how she hides her treats. If anyone in the family finds or touches her treats, she digs them back up and hides them somewhere else. Happy also loves to take walks, visit parks, go on car rides and even go to baseball games. Jessica says, “Since we’ve had Happy, we are more of a happy family. Happy completes us. We look forward to staying home as much as possible so we can be with her. We all look forward to giving her a hug everyday.”