It took a little time while we held out for the absolute perfect match but we got there !!
We often see posts saying rescues don’t/won’t home to families with very young children so we hope this heartwarming story will help dispel that. Of course, there are many other factors to consider:-
Firstly, as a rescue, we need to fully assess our dogs to the best of our ability. For us, at Galway SPCA, that means putting in a lot of extra work, not just with our daily sanctuary routine but also making time to assess our dogs out in the real world. You will often see our posts about days out in towns, parks, schools, parades, homes and each time we do such an outing with our dogs the information on their behaviour in each environment is noted.
For Chewbacca it was our St .Patricks Day Parade where we all could see that his greatest love, where he seemed at his happiest, was when he was near a child. To the point that we struggled to get him along the route as he just had to say hello and cuddle every child he met. Again his behaviour with each child was watched and noted until we were absolutely satisfied that Chewbacca needed a home with children. He had also spent a few days in a foster home and was found queuing in an orderly fashion for the bouncy castle alongside the nieces and nephews 
Secondly, a lot depends on the family looking to adopt. Both, before and during a meet and greet. Is the child confident around our dog? Are they respectful? Do they listen and take heed of their parents? And the parents. Are they alert and conscious of any unwanted behaviour by their child towards the dog ? Do they step in if needed to guide and explain to their child ? Are they confident and able to juggle being a parent while making sure their dogs needs are also met ?
For Anna, her children and Chewbacca their meet and greet was as it was meant to be. It was calm and beautiful. It was loving and trusting. It was confident and sensible. It was the stuff that dreams are made of.
We have had regular updates from Anna who says that Chewie has settled in brilliantly and makes them laugh every day. He absolutely adores his human sisters, as we knew he would, is doing some training and has made some new doggie friends, all supervised by mum Anna. We knew that Chewbacca needed some little friends and we are delighted that we were able to find him his perfect family.
Thanks to Anna and her family for choosing to adopt.
Enjoy your new life, Chewbacca 
