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Elderly Dog Adopted One Day After Animal Shelter Publishes an Emotional Letter From His Original Owners
Image source: WKMG-TV

Elderly Dog Adopted One Day After Animal Shelter Publishes an Emotional Letter From His Original Owners

"I personally felt like we had failed him, because the letter said 'they know you'll find me a family' and we hadn’t found him a good home yet."

An elderly dog named Roofus, who had been living in a Florida animal shelter for more than five years, was finally adopted Saturday, just one day after the shelter's employees published a previously undiscovered letter written by his former family.

Roofus, a 10-year-old Weimaraner-mix, had been kept in a kennel at the Bishop Animal Shelter in Bradenton, Florida, since October 2010, according to WFLA-TV. Although previous families had given him a shot and taken him in, Roofus had always been returned to the shelter as some cited that he was just too old, and others said that he just was not a good fit for their families.

But everything changed when shelter employee Samantha Dominis and her co-workers came across an undated letter that had been penned by Roofus' original owners, as ABC's "Good Morning America" reported. The letter said:

My name is Roofus. My family loves me very much but they have fallen on hard times. My daddy lost his job a year ago and can’t find a new one. My mommy tells me they have to downsize to a smaller apartment and can’t afford to keep me. I will miss my two-legged siblings so much. They keep crying and hugging me, begging mommy and daddy not to take me back to the shelter. I remember being at the shelter before. Your staff is very kind and nothing compares to a family. My family is very sad to give me back to Bishop but they know you’ll find me a new family that will love me just as much. They’re including my bed and favorite toys. Please find me a good home. Love, Roofus.

"Everyone teared up," Dominis told "Good Morning America." "We couldn’t believe it. It showed he was previously very loved. ... I personally felt like we had failed him, because the letter said 'they know you'll find me a family' and we hadn’t found him a good home yet."

Staff member Megan Mayer added that all of the staff members loved Rufus and appreciated his gentle and loving personality.

“We love him. He’s been here so long too, it’s kind of hard not to,” Mayer told WFLA, adding that “It’s a lot harder for (older dogs) to get adopted."

In hopes that his previous family's letter would spur another family to adopt him, the animal shelter published it in a press release and oversaw its appearance on local news stations. One day later, Roofus was adopted by a loving family and welcomed to their home Saturday.

"We call him a little gentleman," Dominis said, according to "Good Morning America." "He’s very mellow and laid back. He's older, so he doesn’t have that puppy energy, but we always said he’d be perfect to lay by somebody's feet."

Follow Kathryn Blackhurst (@kablackhurst) on Twitter

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