FORTY FORT, Pa. — After spending the first four years of her life in a puppy mill, Maxine is learning how to really be a dog and a family pet for the first time. The 4-year-old boxer was rescued two weeks ago, and her foster family can already tell she is the perfect pet.
"Housebroken, she enjoys walking, and she's good on a leash. She likes other dogs. This past weekend, she cohabitated with a cat," said Gayle Devine, a foster for Adopt A Boxer.
Maxine is being fostered through Adopt a Boxer Rescue and is happily adjusting to home life in Forty Fort. Not only is she good with other pets in the home, but she also does very well with children.
"My grandson just turned 11, and he's pretty wild and active, but she loves him and vice versa. After all of the fostering we have done, he actually asked, 'Can we keep this one?'"
Maxine does not play with toys much, and her foster family has not heard her bark, but they say that is normal after living in a puppy mill her whole life.
"She is getting better, but sometimes when you would go to pet her, she would cower. One of the pictures in the mill has a hand coming over the livestock trailer she was in, and she was cowering, and her ears were back, and her tail was down — all signs of fear," Devine said.
But despite her initial fear, Maxine has never shown aggression. She loves to snuggle, and because she is still young, her foster family would like to see her go to a home with a fenced-in backyard or at least a place where she can run free since she has never had that. The family is thrilled with how much she has improved these past two weeks and can't wait for her to find the perfect forever home.
"She likes to go into the house now. A lot of times, they don't like to. She was fearful of going in, (but now) she likes going in. She's not cowering as much. She's wiggling more. It's nice to see the transformation that love shows," said Devine.
If you are interested in meeting Maxine, you can find her adoption information by clicking here.
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