Nimbus’ Unknown Story
We “got” Nimbus on November 14, 2023. After we had to surrender Chino (a story for another day), we waited a few months before even considering adopting another dog. Rommel was not himself as I honestly thought he was missing his play partner.
Our son Max had just be diagnosed on the autism spectrum. We thought getting him a dog that he could call his own would be a good idea.
We headed down to the Henderson Animal Shelter, intending to adopt another dog that I had seen posted on their Facebook page. By the time I got there, that dog had been adopted. So Max and I walked around looking at different dogs with Rommel, our Shepski (Siberian Husky/German Shepherd). Of course, Rommel was quite over stimulated with all the barking dogs, different smells and people roaming around.
We looked at quite a few different large breed dogs, but they each had their own issues. Owner reports aggressive, doesn’t get a long with other dogs, never been with cats (we own three), etc. etc. etc.
As most of you know, I am a husky guy. But there was only one husky available for adoption. Unfortunately, I could tell that Max didn’t want to go home without a dog. So we ended up at this kennel with a solitary pure white dog, just standing there staring off into the distance. It was if Nimbus was a million miles away. He didn’t even respond to Rommel’s incessant barking . . . much to Rommel’s disappointment.
We asked one of the volunteers if we could do a “meet and greet”. This is where we would introduce Nimbus to Rommel in a controlled environment. With both dogs on leash, they sniffed the usual spots. nose, butt, nose, penis, butt, butt, more butt. Then of course, the real test, Rommel tried to hump Nimbus. That didn’t go well. Nimbus snapped at Rommel and Rommel was aghast! This was the first time for a dog to snap back at Rommel’s hump attempts.
They did some more sniffing, then Nimbus just turned away, showing now interest in Rommel. Just staring that million mile stare. Rommel decides that it was more interesting to investigate all the smells around the area we were in. I chatted with the volunteer while Max was trying to hold onto Rommel’s leash while Nimbus was in some other realm.
I honestly felt sorry for Nimbus. It was if he was just accepting of his fate. The volunteer told me that we were the first to do a meet and greet with Nimbus. My heart sank even lower. As stated in the adoption flyer, he was picked up as a stray. This means there is no background. We didn’t know how he would react to cats or other people. I kind of figured by his demeanor, he wouldn’t care about any of that.
The vet at the shelter thought Nimbus was somewhat deaf. He also was constantly shaking his head, as if something was bothering him. After a few minutes, I asked Max what he thought. Max gave him the thumbs up and we had another pup. After the paper work and the requisite $90 fee, it was time to head home. I opened the door for him to the get into the truck. He just stood there, not sure what to do. I actually had to pick up his hindquarters and “push” him into the truck. Once inside he wasn’t sure where he should go. He slowly hopped up on the seat, doing his million mile stare out the window. I powered the window down, thinking he wanted some fresh air. He just looked at the window like it was possessed, hopped off the seat and laid down in between the seats, violently shaking his head.