Hi… I’m Gus. I am the most gentle 10 months old Shih Tzu / Havanas mix, weighing about 14 lbs full of love and sweetness. I am neutered, vaccinated, microchipped, and available for adoption in Ridgefield, WA and can travel to Vancouver, BC for the right family. My adoption fee is $900USD. Adoption Application: https://forms.gle/Xzw8a5zpebKT3w6q6 (Please copy & paste if the link is not clickable.) Here is my story: I don’t remember a lot of the beginning… just how it felt. Heavy. My fur was so matted it pulled on my skin with every little movement. I couldn’t run. I couldn’t play. I didn’t even know how it felt to be comfortable anymore. And then there was the fear… Loud sounds. Hands moving too fast. People I didn’t understand. So I learned to make myself small. When I got to the shelter in Southern California, I didn’t wag my tail. I didn’t go up to anyone. I just curled into a corner… hoping the world wouldn’t notice me. Then something changed. Someone saw me. They took me somewhere new… to a place called Ridgefield, Washington. A home. But I didn’t know that yet. When I first arrived, I was so scared I couldn’t move. Every sound made me curl up tighter. Every movement made me try to disappear even more. I didn’t know if I was safe. Then… something happened I’ll never forget. My foster mom looked at me and said, “It’s okay… we’re going to help you.” She gently shaved all the mats off my body. All that heavy, painful fur… gone. For the first time in a long time… I felt light. I felt clean. I felt… relief. And something inside me changed. After my bath, I stood there for a moment… like I was meeting myself for the first time. Then my tail moved. Just a little at first… then more… and more. I ate my food. I slept through the night. And for the first time… I felt safe. Within just a few hours… the real me came out. The Gus I always was inside. I started following my foster mom everywhere. Room to room… step by step… just to be close. I ask for attention all the time— not because I’m needy… but because now that I know what love feels like… I don’t want it to stop. I love everyone I meet. Dogs, people… it doesn’t matter. I just want to be part of something. To belong. To feel that warmth again and again. Sometimes I wonder… If someone hadn’t helped me… would I still be sitting in that corner? Still trying to disappear? But I’m not that dog anymore. Now I wag my tail. I follow my person. I sleep peacefully. I love with my whole heart. All I’m missing now… is a forever family. One that will keep loving me the way I’ve just learned to love back. Because I promise you… everything I went through didn’t break me. It made me softer. It made me kinder. It made me love even deeper. So if you’re looking for a little dog who will follow you everywhere… who will never take your love for granted… who will give you more affection than you ever thought possible… I’m right here. Not hiding anymore. Just waiting… for you.