Hi! I am Niko, formally known as Sprocket, and this is my C.A.R.E story that I want to share with you.

My adventure started on December 17, 2009 and my life was not always a doggie treat of a time like it is today. I was found by a caring woman who picked me up when I was all alone and only a few paws past a week the doctors estimated. She brought me to C.A.R.E. so I would have a pawrific temporary home until they could help me find my special forever home.

Only three weeks passed when I first met my mommy while she was volunteering at C.A.R.E. as a dog trainer. She would come and visit me at least twice a week along with other K-9 friends I made at C.A.R.E. My mommy would come and work with me on socializing skills and obedience training because she wanted to make sure I had something she called "good manners" when potential families came to visit me. I'm not exactly sure what manners are but we sure had a bone-afide good time during our visits.

One Saturday, February 13, 2010, about a month since I first met my mommy she was volunteering at the shelter. That day alone two families applied to adopt me and they were both approved however, C.A.R.E. had to disclose that I was what humans call a pit bull mix and they turned me away. My mommy heard this while she was volunteering and knew my odds for a forever home were challenged because I am a black dog as well as a pit bull mix. My mommy told me some humans have a misunderstanding on these things but she believed in me and she knew I was special and told me to never forget it. She gave me a hug and a kiss before she went home that day but to my surprise she came back that afternoon just before C.A.R.E. closed for the day. She came and told me she had talked it over with the rest of the family and she decided to adopt me and take me home with her. I was so happy I couldn't stop my tail from wagging for a week. Whew....

To my amazement I had several siblings waiting at home to greet me when I got there and we all get along really well. I have two older sisters and one older brother. My oldest sister Montana is a 9 yo black standard poodle that cuddles with me and loves to play tug and fetch with me. She really helped me out when I was learning to retrieve and showed me how much fun swimming is. My other sister Akila is a 2 yo Calico Sphynx, my mommy tried to explain to me that she is a cat but I don't care and neither does she. We love to play hide and seek and ambush each other which really helps to hone my keen sense of smell and pouncing techniques. My brother Brody is an 8 yo black Scottish terrier and we have fun running in our big back yard and playing chase.

My mommy owns a pet boutique at the Red Barn Plaza in Bradenton, FL and she takes me to work with her. While at the store I get to meet and greet many human, K-9 and feline friends. I also do demonstrations to show humans what a doggie with good manners can do. We have a box in the store where humans can put money in it to make a donation to C.A.R.E. because we want to do our part to help out and thank them for what they did for me. Needless to say I am spoiled but my mommy says sweetly not rotten, I get all of the cookies, clothes, and toys any pup could want for. I am almost 8 months old now and my mommy says I have grown up to be what the ladies call tall, bark and handsome. She also told me I have good business sense and I do a great job working hard to help her out at the store. But if she has taught me one thing from her days living in Okinawa, Japan is balance is the key to life. So we never miss the opportunity to take a walk, go for a ride in the car and get ice cream, visit the park, chase a ball or gnaw on a good bone.

By the way my mommy had a DNA test done for me and I guess I surprised everybody with my All American Heritage. I am Mastiff, Beagle, Pit bull and Rottweiler and mommy calls it a great combination.

I would like to thank C.A.R.E. for their help in caring for me during my stay there. Their care, understanding, time and generosity are greatly appreciated by my mommy and me for all they did for me and others like me. Thank you to you the reader for taking the time to read about my success story and have a pawrific and blessed day!