"Dumped back at a kill facility by an adopter in less than a week."

Bethany here. That was Josie's narrative until H3 revised it yesterday by rescuing her. Now she has a future.

But I want y'all to weigh in on this challenge in the comments. Our H3 community now spans nearly 200,000 across our social media platforms - a powerful group of people who are committed to husky rescue. Can we revise the narrative differently? Can we instead support inexperienced adopters in making it work with their first husky?

It will be hard work. It's much easier to judge the adopter who dumped her. Concededly, our initial post did that ("Maybe you shouldn't get a husky if you have no idea how"), as did many of the comments.

I respectfully disagree with our HBIC. Here's why. I walked into a shelter in June 2022, without prior dog experience, and adopted the first dog I saw--a white Siberian husky.

And I had no f'ing idea how.

Of course, the inevitable happened. I got in over my head and almost returned him to the (no-kill) shelter in the first week. I suspect I'm not alone in becoming overwhelmed and concluding I couldn't make it work. If it happened to you, share your story in the comments - and tell us how you made it work.

Here's my story:

I went into a shelter "just to look." I walked straight into a white husky who had been dumped on the side of the road and taken to the shelter five days earlier. He had awesome looks (real talk), good behavioral notes, and seemed shy and quiet.

I figured he had more personality than he was showing, and I wanted to get him out of the shelter before he was damaged. And yes, it was a draw that he was attractive - let's be real about the fact that this so often puts huskies at greater risk of ending up in unsuitable homes.

So, I told the shelter I'd foster-to-adopt him. They pressured me to adopt until I gave in. And they gave me NO information on huskies other than to say that he would shed a lot, blow his coat twice a year, and require frequent brushing. They did, however, mention that they saw a lot of huskies - which made me wonder what was wrong with the breed.

I went home (couldn't take him home same day) and Googled "why are Siberian huskies abandoned." The answers were overwhelming: per the Google, huskies are demon spawn escape artists who destroy, dig, howl, have separation anxiety, need hours of exercise a day, and under no circumstances should be in the home of a first-time dog owner.

I decided promptly to call the shelter to tell them I'd changed my mind.

But a friend talked me out of it, telling me that I needed to get to know the individual dog rather than rely on breed stereotypes to decide whether or not it could work. So I went back to pick him up.

Within a week, it was obvious that it could not work. I couldn't meet his exercise needs, he started howling within 30 seconds of my leaving, I received frequent complaints from the neighbors, my electrical cords and Peloton shoes were destroyed, and I couldn't go anywhere or do anything other than take him out for multiple walks and play sessions a day. I couldn't even go to the office and was falling behind at work. I felt miserable and isolated.

There was only one thing to do: return him. It would be embarrassing and shameful, and I'd think long and hard before adopting another dog, but at least I'd get my life back.

Then the shelter called and required me to bring him back to be neutered. It was blissful to have my life back for 2-3 days, where I could go to the office, go out to eat, see friends, and not have my life revolve around this creature who had crashed into it and seemingly demolished it.

Real talk? I didn't exactly rush back to pick him up. I told the shelter I was slammed at work to buy myself a couple of days of freedom. And a small part of me considered not going back at all and just reclaiming my life. (Not my finest moment.)

But I did go back to the shelter. The moment he saw me, he started howling and trying to dig through concrete to get to me. And I realized that I had been adopted by a husky that I still wasn't even sure I wanted to adopt. In deference to his wishes, I decided to try for a few more weeks to make it work.

Within a month, I had found a path forward - one where I was supported by friends, dog walkers, and trainers, and no longer felt I had to go it alone - and it was inconceivable to think of giving him up. And three months later, I fell headlong into husky rescue, which has consumed my life ever since. As many know, the resulting partnership that I've formed with Jenni and the H3 team has already saved hundreds of huskies' lives and in due course will save thousands.

But it almost didn't happen. I was almost the adopter that everyone was condemning yesterday.

The line between rescuer and abandoner can be that perilously thin.

So how do we come together to support first-time adopters who want to give up? How do we compensate for shelters' inability to train, counsel, and support husky adopters to make the adoptions stick? I say we do three things:

1/H3 should create a series of training videos that walk first-time husky humans through the challenges and how to weather them.

2/We as a community should create a forum that offers support, empathy, and guidance to adopters who are struggling. Perhaps a message board on H3's website? Would you participate? It would be a great way to participate for everyone who wants to do more to help but can't foster/adopt/donate just yet.

3/We should collaborate with our partner shelters to point their husky adopters in the direction of these resources, so we can help provide the guidance that they are too overwhelmed to do.

If we can do this, we will truly be standing together, until they all have homes. We'll make it work for more of the first-time adopters who have no idea how. And who knows - maybe we convert the next abandoner into a rescuer. How many more will live if that happens, even once?