Pit bull who was overlooked in shelter for 11 years finally gets adopted

All shelter dogs only dream of finding a home of their own, but it takes some longer than others to get adopted. Many dogs wait months or even years through no fault of their own, and as they age into their senior years their chances of getting adopted decrease.

But recently, one senior dog finally found her forever home after being overlooked for 11 whole years.

Vanessa is a female pit bull who arrived at Villalobos Rescue Center, in southern Louisiana, back in 2012. According to her profile, she was surrendered by her owners who were moving and didn’t want her anymore: “She was discarded like an old piece of furniture,” the shelter wrote.

“Her little life had barely started and already she was unwanted and minutes away from dying in the back of a sweltering hot box of a truck,” Tia Torres of Villalobos Rescue Center told Newsweek.

The shelter would be her home for most of her life, as she was constantly passed over by would-be adopters: “Not one person has ever noticed her,” the shelter wrote.

Vanessa had all the attributes people want in a dog: she was crate trained, quiet, good with other dogs and house ready. They couldn’t think of anything negative to say — and yet, no one was ever interested in her.

“It’s hard to say why some dogs are noticed while others are not. No one ever applied to adopt her by no fault of her own,” Torres said. “I think many dogs get overlooked. But I don’t necessarily think it has anything to do with being more desirable or not.”

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Eleven years passed since the day Vanessa was left at Villalobos Rescue Center. She was getting older, and her fur was turning gray. It seemed like Vanessa would never find a home.

But then, a miracle: recently, a former adopter reached out to the shelter and applied to adopt Vanessa!

Torres told Newsweek that Vanessa’s new owner is a two-time adopter from the same shelter; both dogs have since passed from old age and they decided to open their hearts to this long-waiting rescue dog. Vanessa is now heading to her new home in Delaware, and her care is being paid for through VRC’s senior dog program.