Have You Met Sally? Interviewing an Arizona Animal Shelter Dog

"Life behind the chains of links is hard," Sally told me, with a sigh. She means the chain-link fences that keep her safe.

Then Sally picks up her tennis ball and runs to the other side of the yard, happy to be playing in the afternoon shade.

Sally is one of the longest residents of the Nancy J Brua Animal Care Center in Sierra Vista. A pit mix, Sally has been at the shelter since August 5th, 2022. "That makes," Sally pauses and does some quick dog math, counting on her toe beans. "Lots and lots of kibble nights with barky neighbors."

By my math, that's 624 days. A long time to wait for the perfect fur-ever family. Sally told me she dreams of snuggling on a comfortable couch with a nice human who will let her nap and give her pets as they watch Netflix together.

READ: Arizona Veterinarians Urgent Warning: Vaccinate your dogs now!

She likes romcoms and movies where the dog is the hero. She once had a dream she and Dug, the star of the Pixar movie "UP", were best friends.

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Living in the Human World: How Sally Learns Manners

Sally has a friend at the shelter named Mariela. Mariela is a human who knows Sally better than just about anyone and she's helping Sally learn manners so she can live happily in the human world.

"I'm going to Sit Sit Sit!!" Sally said, excitedly.

"Sit Means Sit," Mariela gently corrects. "We're working on her manners. She's learning to walk loosely on a leash, sit, stay, and to pay attention to her handler."

"I like cats!" Sally interrupts.

"No," Mariela corrects patiently, "you like to chase cats. Cats don't like that. You're learning how to listen to your human and how to leave smaller animals alone."

"Oh, yeah!", Sally said, picking up her tennis ball. "I really like my tennis ball. It's fun!" Mariela picks up the ball and tosses it for Sally, who happily runs after it.

READ: Want to Help Animals? Shop These Amazing Arizona Thrift Stores

Mariela shows me how Sally loves a good belly scratch. Sally flips on her back and shows off her backy-scratchy-dance moves, smiling the whole time.

"Not a Party Girl". Sally Would Like to Be an Only Dog.

Sally is so friendly, but she can get a little fixated on things. "Let's just say," Mariela explains, "Sally's not a party girl."

She'll be happier one-on-one, which means she probably won't enjoy a trip to the dog park, isn't too fond of cats or smaller dogs, and may not do well with a family who already has a lot of dogs.

For now, Sally's manners are coming along nicely. She's learning to focus on her handler, and she's learning quickly.

She's very smart, Mariela tells me and she's already made a lot of progress in a very short time. Even though she still has some things to learn, she'd love to learn with a human mom or dad.

"She's getting there, but let's just say," Mariela smiles, "Sally is a work in progress. No rushing allowed."

If you'd like to meet Sally, call the Nancy J Brua Animal Care Center at (520) 458-4151 or visit their Facebook page.

Special thanks to Arleen Garcia and Mariela Crespo of the Nancy J Brua Animal Care Center in Sierra Vista for the information in this story. Photos by Val Davidson, Townsquare Media.