By: Grace Dumas, News of the North
Two dogs once adored by longtime Southeast Alaska journalist and former news director of News of the North Pete Carran, are now waiting for a new home at Juneau Animal Rescue, where staff say the bonded pair has drawn community attention but no adoption applications.
Rascal and Aja were brought to the shelter shortly after Carran’s passing, Executive Director Rick Driscoll said in an interview.
“They’re great dogs.” Said Driscoll, “Usually, dogs come to the shelter, and they all have their quirks and their personalities, but these two are great. They love to go on walks, they seem to get along pretty well with all the other dogs that are here at the shelter, it’s really clear that they’re a bonded pair.”
The pair, well known around Juneau, has received steady foot traffic from residents eager to check on them. But the challenge of adopting two dogs together has left them without a permanent home.
“They’ve been getting a lot of exercise while they’ve been here, lots of people come in to take them for walks.” Driscoll said, “For example, someone wants to take Rascal for a walk, but maybe they don’t feel comfortable taking two dogs for a walk, Aja will kind of lose her mind a little bit because she wants to go along for the walk as well. And vice versa, someone takes Aja for a walk, and Rascal doesn’t get to go. There’s some separation anxiety that is pretty obvious, because I think they’ve spent a lot of time together.”
While interest in seeing the dogs has been high, Driscoll said no one has yet started the adoption process, something he says is likely about the commitment required to take home two medium-sized dogs at once.
If the wait stretches much longer, staff may face a difficult decision.
“We don’t want to split them up, because they’re certainly a bonded pair, but at some point we will have to have a discussion as a team, about whether it’s better for them to go to different homes and get out of the Shelter.” Said Driscoll, “The shelter, while our staff here are awesome and loving and care for them exceedingly well, animal shelters, by nature, are not places where dogs thrive. is it better for their mental health to keep them here and try and keep them together, or is it better for them and their mental health to get out of here and go to loving homes rather than stay here?”
Still, he remains optimistic.
“My gut says they’re going to get adopted soon,” he said. “it’s hard if anybody comes down and visits with these dogs and sees them interact together and takes them for a walk, it’s hard not to fall in love with them.”
