Lucky Farms Animal Rescue

05/31/2026

These 6 amazing giant breed dogs are looking for wonderful families. If you’re looking to add a furry family member, check these pups out!

They’re in foster homes in TN GA. We do adopt nationwide but in most cases require adopters to travel to the foster home with their current dog/dogs (to ensure they will be friends) to pick up.

05/31/2026

"He's afraid of X, so he must have been abused by/with X."

In rescue, a lot of dogs come into care with unknown histories. Many of these dogs present with specific or generalized fear and anxiety.

It can be easy - so, SO easy - to attach a story to their behaviour. In fact, it's becoming increasingly common for people to adopt dogs BECAUSE of their story. The more tragic, the better.

The problem with this is that it tends to freeze dogs into their neuroses. Their owner becomes so attached to the story, so emotionally invested, that they themselves cannot move past it. When the owner gets stuck, so does the dog.

Then the story becomes an excuse.

He's aggressive to the postman because one must have abused him.

He's leash reactive to other dogs because he was a 'bait dog'.

He runs from us when we grab the fly swat because someone has hit him with it.

In most cases, these behaviours are caused from a lack of experience in the critical period of socialization. Their inexperience can present itself as fear, anxiety, stress and aggression; mechanisms they develop over time to cope.

But what exactly caused their rescued dogs behaviour is irrelevant. It's a fools errand to try to figure it out; an addictive oxytocin-fueled quest to justify a lack of action.

He's afraid of men? Make men = good things. He runs from the fly swatter? Pick the damn thing up and throw the dog a handful of steak a few times. See what happens.

When we adopt a dog, we're making a commitment to BETTER their life. Holding on to their past is doing the opposite. Show them they're in a better place by overcoming their problems, not nurturing them.

05/31/2026

Digging is fantastic enrichment for dogs, and some breeds (*coffhuskiescoff* *coffdachshundscoff*) are especially dedicated to landscaping (or moonscaping) your yard for you. Providing a space where this behavior is allowed can help save your hard work from turning into Craterville. :)

05/31/2026

CHOOSING A DOG BECAUSE OF THE WAY THEY LOOK
We wouldn’t choose a partner or make a commitment to sharing our lives with someone based purely on the way they look.

We would hopefully first get to know them, their personality and who they really are before making that sort of commitment.

Yet people continue to choose dogs just because they may have pretty eyes, are really cute or just really like the look of them without any understanding or desire to learn about what that particular breed was selectively bred to do and what behaviour they might expect.

The way a dog behaves is not always specific to the breed. Dogs are individuals, with their own unique personality and their behaviour is shaped not only by genetics but by their specific life and learning experiences and environment, but problems can happen when the traits of that breed and their specific needs are not taken into account.

Some breeds may just not be compatible with a particular family’s needs, lifestyle or expectations.

Is it fair for us to suppress, try to train out or even punish breed specific tendencies when we keep a dog in a captive environment that is not suitable for them.

Research the breed and learn all you can about their potential traits before making a choice.

Understand the breed and make sure that you are able to provide appropriate outlets for those needs.

05/31/2026

💜Available for adoption💜

💜Polly
💜3-4yr old female Great Dane
✅Spayed and UTD on vet care, vaccines & preventatives
🐶Good with other dogs.
🐱Good with dog savvy cats
👧🏻Kids 12+ yrs because she has not been exposed to younger kids
🏠Housebroken and crate trained. MUST be crated when left home alone.
🌎Located in the Nashville TN area
🚗We currently are open to assisting with transport to an adoptive family in TN GA AL MO MS KY OH IN IL SC NC VA WV MD DE PA

Polly is a 3 yr old Great Dane with a big heart and an even bigger personality. While she was surrendered to the shelter as part of a breeder surrender along with several other Danes, Polly already knew that the good life includes soft couches and loving people and she’s fully on board with both.

A bit of a self-proclaimed princess, Polly would happily spend her days lounging beside her humans, soaking up affection and offering her own brand of sweet companionship. She’s full of personality (and definitely has opinions she’s not afraid to share), which only adds to her charm.

Polly can be a little timid when faced with new situations, but with the help of her wonderful temporary foster family, she’s already making big strides and growing more confident every day. With patience, love, and a steady routine, this gentle girl will continue to blossom into the amazing companion we know she can be.

Polly is spayed & UTD on vet care, vaccines and preventatives. She is currently being fostered in the Nashville TN area. We adopt NATIONWIDE. Out of respect for our foster family's time and privacy, we do NOT arrange meet and greet without an approved application on file. If you’re interested in adopting Polly, you can view our requirements, age based adoption fees and fill out an adoption application at https://www.luckyfarmsrescue.org/adoption

05/30/2026

05/30/2026

🩵Available for adoption🩵

🩵Franco
🩵2 yr old male Saint Bernard
✅Neutered & UTD on vet care, vaccine & preventatives
🎓Graduated from intermediate training program.
🐶Good with other dogs
🐱Good with dog savvy cats
👧🏻Kids 8+yrs old. He has not been exposed to young children.
🏠Housebroken and crate trained
✅REQUIRE verifiable proof of prior giant breed ownership in the form of veterinary records.
🌎Located in Nashville TN area

Read more about Franco
https://www.luckyfarmsrescue.org/adoptables?pgid=juvj1esq2-62d09b1a-fc1e-40b5-9cce-f78c44511e44

05/30/2026

It is and ISN’T the dog.
“Yeah, but he reacted TO the dog.”

Yes.
He absolutely did.
But there is a much bigger picture here.

“I just want him to stop.
How do I stop the reaction?”

I know you’re trying your hardest.
I know how exhausting this can feel.
And I know sometimes it feels like you’re constantly scanning and waiting for the next reaction.

But sometimes we need to widen the scope.

Trigger stacking is not just seeing three stressful things in a row.
It is the slow and sometimes chronic accumulation of stress.

“He’s only stressed when he sees a dog.”
No.
He really isn’t.

Biology doesn’t work that way.

Think about yourself for a moment.
How do YOU feel after an argument with someone?
That stress can stay with you for hours.
Sometimes days.

Then perhaps the next morning you miss the bus.
You’re late for work.
That night you still relax and you can forget about a good nights sleep, that's not happening.

Stress lingers.

And dogs are no different.

With dogs, people sometimes only look at the last 3 seconds of behaviour while completely missing the previous 12, 24 or even 72 hours.

Poor sleep.
Neighbourhood noise.
Pain or discomfort.
Frustration.
Repeated arousal.

It ALL compounds.

Trigger stacking matters because stress can accumulate.
Dogs don’t always start every situation from the same emotional baseline.

There is no zero on that dial to keep returning to.

Some days their coping ability is already reduced long before the visible reaction happens.

Not every reaction starts in “that” moment.
With “that” dog.