Florida Shelter Dog Buckwheat Finally Finds Forever Home After Over 200 Days
Good things come to dogs who wait! 
By Chad Taylor October 27, 2021 Advertisement Pin FB More Tweet Email Send Text Message Print 
Buckwheat after his happy adoption Credit: Courtesy of Furry Friends Adoption
Every shelter's goal is to find loving forever homes for every animal they possibly can, even if it takes a while. That was the case for Buckwheat, the stocky terrier mix who found his way to the Furry Friends Adoption, Clinic and Ranch in Jupiter, Fla., back in January.
Jupiter police found Buckwheat—all 80 pounds of him—tied to a fence and abandoned in a construction site. They transported him to Furry Friends where he was placed in a quarantine hold for two weeks, then placed up for adoption.
It may have taken some time to find the right home for such a hefty fella, but it certainly wasn't because of a lack of personality; Buckwheat became an instant favorite among the Furry Friends staff.
"Just one look at you when you were passing by just made you smile," Furry Friends' Kelly Ferguson tells Daily Paws. "You can just tell what a big sweetheart he was by his eyes. Those eyes—almost cartoony. They sucked everyone in."
Though Buckwheat was one of the largest dogs at the Furry Friends shelter, he was friendly and playful with every dog he met and developed a reputation as a giant cuddle bug, lying his body across the lap of anyone who would let him.
But big dogs aren't a good fit for every living situation, and it took quite a while to find one that worked for Buckwheat. However, the happy white dog's fortune turned this month during the Bissell Pet Foundation's annual "Empty the Shelters" program, which reduced adoption fees and allowed over 6,000 pets to be adopted, including Buckwheat.
Buckwheat posing with the woman who adopted him Credit: Courtesy of Furry Friends Adoption
"It was bittersweet seeing Buckwheat go off to his forever home," Ferguson says. "There were more than a few happy tears shed that day! At the end of the day we get sent a staffwide email about who has left and who has entered our shelter, and you can really tell by the amount of replies how loved he was by the staff."
RELATED: Your Guide to Adopting a Dog For the First Time
Buckwheat's new owner, Lisa Cotton, came into the shelter during the week of Empty the Shelters and fell in love with the happy, playful giant, believing he would make a great companion for her German shepherd. Now happily living with his forever family, Buckwheat has a new lease on life—and a new name: Gus.
