College janitor adopts dumped Australian Cattle dog, but finds out the pawfect pupper came with a few surprises, dog mom says: ‘For the first three days she was a normal dog but the moment I left she shut down completely.’

Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor

Jun 22, 2026 7:30 AM EDT

It is not everyday that you turn up to work and leave with a brand new pupper pal, but that is exactly what happened to a college janitor in this story. After coming across the doggo looking disoriented and sad she took pity on him and brought him home. Initially their story started out sweet and simple. But shortly after this doggo's adoptaversary things took a turn for the worse.

For what you do often see in Reddit's r/AustralianCattleDog subreddit is talk about how to keep these high energy and high intelligence dogs from flying off the handle. They have so much energy and so much going on in their minds that they need stability, reliability and lots to keep them occupied. But when our rescuer took a trip only a few days into starting to care for this canine, she also failed at giving him the stability that he needed. And when a new hooman came to temporarily care for the pup, he completely shut down.

A heartbreaking moment for all involved seeing as this dog had only recently begun to enjoy the perks of being a canine child once again. To be left thinking that your world has collapsed around you and you are once again alone, undeserving of the most basic of support, that's a low spot to be in. but this pawrent refused to give up on her needy pupper and put in the work with a trainer to coax the canine out of its shell once more and become the best bud she always wanted. So the moral of the story here is that mistakes can be mended with a lot of time and effort, which is great, but at the same time it is also worth taking a good hard look at your schedule after saving a dog from the streets and deleting anything that causes the two of you to be separated for significant periods of time.

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Well, this is quite the tough spot to be in but a rather reasonable one at that. When you bring a doggo off the street the main thing they are looking for from you beyond food and shelter is stability. They need to know that the hooman they are coming to trust will actually be their hooman and not leave them like their previous hooman did. It is a scar that can last for a lifetime in some cases. So obviously when the hooman who has been caring for you for a few days ups and leaves you with someone else, you are going to lose your mind as a doggo. Not that any of this is much easier for the pawrent.
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There we go, with a little love and effort everything is achievable with a doggo. It does not matter what the issue is when it comes to a doggo’s behavior. You must always have buckets of time, patience and treats on hand to help you help them. And now that this pawrent is back and being a stable and regular part of this pupper’s life, things can start getting better for the fearful pup. It goes to show that we all make mistakes, but that it is how we make up for them that matters most.
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