We rescued a puppy in late March. He is now roughly a year old. He was burned by cigarettes and had his hip kicked in. The MSPCA found him as a little guy and fixed him up. They had a hard time adopting him out due to what most people thought was him being aggressive. He was returned twice. We figured we would give it a try. The first 2 weeks were touch and go. But with positive reinforcement and love he is a completely new puppy. The hard part with him (his name is Klause) is his size. He is roughly a year old and just hit 118 pounds. We had him DNA tested and he is 11-14 months old and half Lab and half Newfoundland. He now cuddles with our cats and assimilated well to the family. He is still a puppy and acts like one, which when you are 118 pounds you break things...he thinks he is still a 30 pound pup..lol.

That's awesome that he's come so far! We have a rescue lab too and after a year and a half she is a completely new dog too, it's amazing what a stable loving environment can do for a dog with a terrible past! Good luck, he's very cute, even if he is big!

@chalk2001 said:

Good for you for adopting a rescue! I grew up with bigger dogs (labs, german shephards) but have not had the ability to own/raise a dog until recently. I'm throwing around the idea of adopting a rescue, maybe within the next year or two.

How was the process? Any tips?

Rescue is the only way in my eyes. So many in need of homes. I am a fan of the MSPCA and that's where Klause came from. They do so much good work. The biggest thing is to go and see what dog they have near you and which ones fit your situation.

http://www.mspca.org/adoption/methuen-nevins/

This is where we got him and it links to all the MSPCA's as well. We are taking him to a tree lighting and horse feeding on Saturday. We help on some Saturdays and Sunday and give talks to groups about adopting dogs and the awesome parts and the realities of adopting a dog that has been abandoned, hurt and/or homeless.
You will never regret that look of love knowing that you made a difference and most likely saved a life. Plus this is how you could wake up each morning.....

::uncontrollable tears::

good for you man - i'd like to kill the motherfucker who did that to your dog

Thats awesome!

Just from family and close friends, I can think of 8-10 rescues that have become fantastic pets.
My parents have a new little handful they are working with now. They got him, informed that he was supposed to max out at like 30#. But he's less than a year old and more than double that already. whoopsie. Great disposition, but so. much. energy!

OP's dog came with tags that read "Property of Michael Vick"

@weekapaug19 said:

awesome story....we rescued Barley on march 31st last year, she is a 2 1/2 year old black lab who was beaten by her former owner, had puppies way to early and they let them nurse on her after she got fixed (not good for dogs). She's amazing, couldn't imagine life without her by my side now. She is still very timid with new people and loud noises (big trucks, etc...) but she has come so far in the past 8 months.

sorry, no idea how to post pictures or else I would.

Our rescue lab that I mentioned above also had a litter of puppies way too soon (pregnant in her first heat since she was tied to a pole and left outside 24/7). Do you think it affected her size at all? Our girl is really small for a lab and they pretty sure she is pretty much all lab, but she's only 56 lbs and quite small. I always wonder if the early pregnancy affected her growth...
Not that I'm complaining she's a perfect size for us!

that's a good question, but I don't think so, I just think we got the "runts" of the litter, our's is only 46-47 pounds and is full grown