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By Lucy Notarantonio
Senior Reporter
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A dog who is often overlooked is desperately searching for a family to call his own after being returned for a second time to an animal shelter.
James, a pit bull mix, was a stray when he first arrived at the Lexington Humane Society in April 2019. At the time, he had age on his side as he was 3 years old and was adopted after a few months.
"Unfortunately, he was returned through no fault of his own. James was then adopted for a second time in October of 2019 and he spent several years in his home," Meghan Hawkins, the director of communications at the shelter, told Newsweek.
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Earlier this year, James was returned to the Kentucky-based shelter as he was having problems with another dog. Now, age 7, James is looking for somewhere to spend his retirement years.
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Hawkins told Newsweek: "James, unfortunately, does not get a lot of attention from anyone, other than staff and volunteers. Being an older, black, pit bull type, he gets passed over often for younger or smaller dogs."
He is described as a "timid and nervous dog" by the shelter staff who want nothing more than a forever home for him.
"James will fit in well in a low-key home. He does have a bit of anxiety and is currently on fluoxetine to help with that. While he may be timid at first, once he gets comfortable with you, he truly opens up and is very sweet and loving. Like most dogs, he just needs a little patience and a lot of love," she told Newsweek.
On November 1, the shelter wrote a heartfelt adoption plea about James on their Facebook page. So far, the post has more than 340 likes and has been shared by almost 2,220 people.
The post said: "Every time someone walks by his kennel, James looks up with the most heartbreaking puppy eyes you'll ever see. He's in urgent need of a loving and patient home. Will you be the one to offer him the security and comfort he deserves? With your help, James can finally leave the shelter and become the happy dog he was always meant to be."
Recently, James participated in the shelters Train-A-Bull program for the second time. It is specialized training and enrichment for dogs awaiting adoption.
Hawkins told Newsweek: "We have no doubt that he will thrive in the classes. It is a program that pairs volunteers with dogs that need a little more individual enrichment and attention. The volunteers consistently work with the dogs to teach them basic commands, leash training, crate training, and social skills.
"It's a fantastic program where the participants can truly see the results of their efforts and witness good dogs grow and blossom into even better dogs. And it's a program that succeeds."
James has received a lot of attention online, one user said: "[Please] somebody with a loving home come get this cutie."
Another comment said: "How do these sweet pets keep coming back? I don't understand people."
Update 11/13/23, 2:56 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with a new photo.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
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