TENACIOUS TANK
Tank was a classic, beautiful, silver-grey American Pitbull Terrier dog, who often startled people when they first saw him. With a stocky, strong body and a square-block head, he was a typical 1 year old bull-in-a-china-shop puppy.
Yet Tank oozed love and affection with everyone he met. By his looks alone, he often was misunderstood; but, the kids in juvenile hall understood him, because they were often misjudged, too.
Tank was up for adoption for a long time and UnChained and Tank’s Rescue, AFRP, committed to find him a home no matter how long it took. Tank was in class at Rancho Cielo, where he was a favorite and known as the "big dog on campus.” He then co-taught a class, alongside an UnChained youth trainer graduate, on Positive Reinforcement at San Jose Juvenile Hall.
Through his charm and affection, he won the hearts of several boys in Juvenile Hall, inspiring them to sign up for the next UnChained class. Tank was also in class at Kinship Center where his Youth Trainers fell in love with him and made a commitment to help Tank find his new family.
Through all the love, Tank still had a rough go of it. What people often didn't see was Tank's intelligence and eagerness to please. Because he was playful, bouncy and crazy-strong, he had trouble finding the right foster home; as a result, he lived in a kennel at a local vet clinic for months, with UnChained and AFRP volunteers getting his bouncy, leash-pulling self outside for walks every day.
Enter Jeff. Jeff saw the special qualities in Tank and made a commitment to adopt him. Jeff then flew from Washington State to Monterey, where he rented a car to drive himself and Tank back home to Washington. Tank’s new family has reported how well he’s doing:
“He is such an amazing pup. Tank is an amazing brother to his sister and to foster dogs that come and stay with us. He is such a special boy! We love him so much! He makes our lives better every day, so to thank him we take him on awesome trips, give him lots of snacks and love, and make sure he has amazing adventures!”
We love Tank and his story: he found his own family and helped his Youth Trainers believe that challenges are worth seeing through to the end.
