When Danny with A Safefurr Place heard about a dog who’d been living at a truck stop for the past five months, he knew he needed to help.
When he arrived at the truck stop, Danny discovered the dog, a pittie, was too shy to approach. It was clear it was going to take some time before the dog could be rescued, but Danny wasn’t going to give up.
Each day, Danny showed up at the truck stop and tried to gain the dog’s trust, but each day he went home empty-handed. The pitbull wouldn’t even let Danny close enough to pet him.
In an interview with The Dodo, Danny explained, “I always had this belief that, all right, the next day he’s gonna let me pet him. But things did not turn out that way at all.”
It was clear the dog wanted to be left alone but that’s just because he didn’t trust people enough to know that help was possible. Thankfully, Danny was able to find a small, fenced-in area at the truck stop to lure the pup to.
After the dog was cornered, Danny approached, and miraculously, the dog lowered his head and allowed himself to be leashed! It seemed the dog had finally given up, but his momentary defeat was about to change his world for the better.
The pittie was placed into a loving foster home and named Ruger. He ended up being one of the sweetest dogs who had so much love to give!
I am broadly interested in how human activities influence the ability of wildlife to persist in the modified environments that we create.
Specifically, my research investigates how the configuration and composition of landscapes influence the movement and population dynamics of forest birds. Both natural and human-derived fragmenting of habitat can influence where birds settle, how they access the resources they need to survive and reproduce, and these factors in turn affect population demographics. Most recently, I have been studying the ability of individuals to move through and utilize forested areas which have been modified through timber harvest as they seek out resources for the breeding and postfledging phases. As well I am working in collaboration with Parks Canada scientists to examine in the influence of high density moose populations on forest bird communities in Gros Morne National Park. Many of my projects are conducted in collaboration or consultation with representatives of industry and government agencies, seeking to improve the management and sustainability of natural resource extraction.
