u/Big-Discipline-799

Hi all! I’ve had my new baby (estimated 15 years old) for about a week. He came from the shelter with the name Zounds and I just don’t like it and don’t feel like it fits him. Since he’ll be with me for the rest of his life (and he doesn’t seem to know his shelter name as he was brought in as a senior), I want to give him a new name that’s better. He truly is just a little polite old man and is so incredibly sweet and I want his name to reflect that. He has a raspy meow so I figured with that, and his color, “Rusty” might be good but I’m still not convinced it fits him as it seems a bit too rough and tough if that makes sense? Any ideas are helpful! He’s been going by “baby” and “kitty” right now 😭

Sorry if this is not the purpose of the sub. Please delete if so. I am fostering my first pup — an 8 month old German Shepherd mix. I have had him for about 3 months, and I truly love and adore this dog. 99% of my energy both physically and mentally is spent making sure this puppy is thriving. I would genuinely foster fail in a second if not for one issue — his size. He is 90 lbs at 8 months. I am a 26 year old girl who weighs 120 lbs, living alone with no help. I truly believe at this point it would be irresponsible for me to adopt this dog. Not only can I not physically handle him, I also live in a small apartment with no yard. I make sure he gets plenty of exercise daily, but it’s truly not sustainable long term, especially as I’m handling him completely alone. I guess I am just looking for support, I have been super disappointed by the reaction of all my friends and family. It has really been weighing on me. I wanted to do a nice thing and foster a puppy that is having a hard time in a shelter and I feel like I have been beat down constantly to the point where I don’t want to foster again. He is a gorgeous dog, so I get stopped ~10 times a day by strangers asking about his breed, his weight, etc. when I say he’s a foster, they immediately tell me they hope he’s a foster fail. My friends and family have said similar comments, along with telling me that I’m going to break his heart, he’s going to be so upset, he’s going to be so confused, etc. I know I am not able to give this dog what he needs. I am trying to do something selfless, but everyone is making me feel like a terrible person for it. I’m just really down about this and I would like to hear others’ experiences and how they handle comments like this. I have tried to explain to everyone that he would thrive in a different home from mine, and that if I adopt him i won’t be able to foster any more dogs, but that doesn’t seem to be good enough for anyone. I know I should just ignore them, but it’s literally been nonstop for as long as I’ve had him and it’s really starting to affect me.

Need name urgently!! New “forever foster” senior baby. Name from shelter was not good and didn’t seem to fit him

Judgment from friends, family, and strangers.