Bernadette (Bernie)

UPDATE: December 17th

GREAT NEWS! Bernie went home with her potential forever family on the weekend! She is doing okay, not too stressed but still scared. I can not wait to see her transformation!

UPDATE: November 23rd

Today I went to the training school and visited Bernie. She is looking really good! She is finally clean! She is still scared of people but will now take food out of the hands of people she has only just met. It is also easy for the trainers to catch her to put her leash on - which is a huge improvement. Bernie is just so timid. She will get there.. she just needs to do it in her own time. She needs a patient, loving home! She was also in the exercise pen today with other dogs. She did just fine! She even did a few playful bounces =) It is possible for her to live in a home with another dog, it may even help her come out of her shell!

UPDATE: November 22nd

Bernie is doing well at the training school. She is still scared but slowly coming out of her shell! She has a lot of potential! She is a much happier dog now that she is out of the stressful shelter! Please consider fostering or adopting! Or if you would like to donate money to help us keep her at the school while we look for a home for her please contact me at [email protected]

UPDATE: October 28th

Finally!! Bernie is out of the shelter!!!!

Bernie is now at the training school, where hopefully she will really start to learn how to trust people! We can't wait to see her transformation!

Some amazing ladies worked really hard to fundraise the money so that they could try to turn Bernie's life around by sending her to the school. Thank you so much Leonie and Jenn!

SHE ONLY HAS ONE MONTH THERE, please consider fostering or adopting the new and improved Bernie!! ♥♥

October 5th 2012 UPDATE

Bernie is still waiting at the shelter! She is chained up now because the shelter is in the middle of moving. I went to visit on Thursday and she is just so excited whenever she sees people! Won't someone give her a chance....?

August, 2013

Gorgeous Bernie is STILL at the shelter! She is such a beautiful girl! Recently the shelter was moved and Bernie was moved from her pen and put on a chain. Of course that isn't good, but it did mean that volunteers were able to interact with her and touch her! She even went for a walk!!!!! From not letting people touch her at all to going for a walk!! It's amazing progress and she will do so well if she is in a loving home with a patient family! Please consider adopting or fostering this gorgeous girl ^^

June, 2013
Sweet Bernie has been waiting way FAR too long for her forever home. She has a special place in the hearts of many volunteers for her sweet nature and unforgettable face. Her St. Bernard looks are so striking! She is curious and healthy (recently receiving both heart worm AND Frontline treatment), but is still very shy with visitors in her pen.
With a lot of patience and a little hard work, Bernadette would make a warm and loving member of any forever family!

May, 2013
With spring weather comes spring parasites, worms, and ticks. Fortunately for Bernie, some hard-working volunteers have been making sure she is getting monthly heartworm prevention. At the moment, regular shelter trips are postponed until further notice, but if you have a special interest in this special girl, please contact me! We can set up a private trip to meet this beauty!

April, 2013
This beautiful girl has been noticed by several volunteers. It's hard to NOT notice such a beautiful dog and such unusual breeding in Korea. But even more than that, I think volunteers can sense how great she would be as a companion. Although many people are rooting for her, she has yet to find a forever home. Please come see her for yourself!

March, 2013
Bernie is really in need of a patient home. Fostering this girl could make the difference between a real loving home and a life spent in an outdoor cage. She is so shy and needs more exposure to loving volunteers. Once a week just isn't cutting it. If you were to meet this girl, you could see how much she wants to love and be loved. She's so excited to see people come toward her cage, but then gets shy once they are inside with her. As large dogs go, she is still a reasonable apartment dog with regular exercise. PLEASE be the one to girl this girl a second chance.

February, 2013
Bernie recently caught the attention of a new volunteer and who can blame her?!? It's not every day you see such a rare St. Bernard mix, especially in Korea. Bernie was lucky enough to spend some time with the volunteer; getting treats and kindness. While Bernie is still very timid, she has so much potential to be a loving and affectionate companion with the right training and a patient owner. I know that with a little TLC, she would be a show stopper! Come to Asan Shelter and see this girl for yourself. You will literally "Awww" out loud with one look from those big, puppy dog eyes.

January, 2013
I was so happy to see her this past weekend, almost as happy as she was to see me! Bernie has moved to a bigger cage on the hill and seems so much happier. She was wagging her tail and running in circles when she saw me coming up to visit. Despite not seeing her for a couple of weeks, she still seems to be getting more and more comfortable around people. She gave my hands a lot of kisses and after awhile, she settled in and lay down right in front of me! She's definitely becoming more comfortable around people!

I can think of no better way to begin the new year than to come visit this sweet girl. She is such a wonderful girl and the second you look into her eyes, you can see what a good and gentle heart she has. Come check out Bernie!

Dec. 2012,

Bernie has made so much progress over the past few weeks. At first, she wouldn't come close to me when I visited her pen. Although she was always eager and wagging her tail, she shied away from actual touch. Now, she is slowly learning that there are good people in the world. She will come very close to me and take food out of my hand. She even likes to lick little bits of egg off my hand. While she might seem intimidating, she has a very soft mouth and a real lady. A few times, I've even been able to stoke her under the chin. All you have to do is look Bernie in the eyes to see the potential this girl has. She is a darling dog and just needs someone who is patient enough to work with her. Underneath all the caution is a gentle giant who would be a great addition to any family. Please come and visit her to see for yourself!

Oct. 2012,
This pretty girl really wants to shine! She wants to be away from the noise and the stress of the shelter so that she doesn't have to feel afraid and her confidence can grow. She wants consistent and kind human attention that she doesn't have to compete with hundreds of other dogs for so that she can feel free to show her true affection for people. She wants a family that she can love and cherish as much as they love and cherish her.
Please consider inviting Bernie into your family!

Sept. 2012
Bernie is still waiting for her forever home! Why don't you come out to Asan shelter to visit her? She would absolutely love to meet you!

UPDATE:
Bernadette has just received some heartworm prevention and is looking healthy.
I am also happy to report that she seems to slowly be overcoming her shyness! I truly believe that she would flourish in a home setting with kind guardians, and that she will make a fabulous companion to some lucky people!

If you are interested in meeting Bernadette, or any of the other wonderful dogs and cats at Asan, there are group volunteer trips to the shelter almost every weekend! Please contact us if you would like to join. Bernadette would love to meet you, and the more friendly and wonderful people she can interact with, the more she will learn to trust.

UPDATE: July, 2012
Bernie recently happily received a healthy dose of Heartworm Preventative donated to the shelter by some very generous volunteers! She continues to be quite nervous around people, but her curiosity and natural sociability drive seem to be overpowering her anxiety. Once she learns to really trust, she will be a fantastic companion!

UPDATE: June, 2012
Bernie really needs someone to take a chance on her before she lets the stress of shelter life get the better of her.
She responds to kindness, and she seems to like human companionship, but she needs to have consistent access to both of these in order to control her fear.
If you or anyone you know can accomodate a special case like Bernie, please get out to the Asan shelter as soon as possible to visit her.

BERNIE:
Bernie is one of those special individuals who don't come around very often.
First of all, just to state the obvious, she is a very striking girl with unusual markings and colouration.
Secondly, and much more intriguingly, she is a shy and somewhat fearful dog who so obviously does not want to be a shy and somewhat fearful dog!
When I first approached her enclosure, she switched back and forth from excited "oh yay! Here comes a new friend to play with" barks to "I'm gonna make lots of big angry noises to scare away this person but I'm absolutely not going to mean any of it" barks. She quieted right down as soon as I entered her pen and was very interested in the treats I offered her, but a little reticent to take them. After the treats had been exhausted, Bernadette was happy to have me sit in her pen with her as long as I didn't make any sudden movements, and she even psyched herself into coming right up to sniff my face a couple of times.
I believe this girl is perched precariously on the brink between two possibilities: if her interactions with people continue to be sporadic or negative, she could begin to lean toward severe fearfulness or possibly aggression and be quite difficult to rehabilitate. If her interactions with people become consistent and very positive, for example, if a wonderful person elected to foster her or give her a loving forever home, she could become a most loyal and affectionate companion, paying back her rescuer several-fold everyday for the rest of her life.
The power is within us to take her down the right path! Please consider fostering or adopting Bernadette!