Adopted Boy Is Fully Dedicated To Saving Senior Shelter Dogs

Apr 09, 2021 by apost team

Every day, new children continue to enter the United States foster care system, but there just aren't enough caregivers. People hear many harrowing accounts of experiences that young adults share once they grow out of the system, and unfortunately, not everyone is a nurturing and kind caregiver in the foster system. Thankfully, more and more people are opting for adoption today, which is giving lots of children a better future, but the wait times to be chosen for adoption are generally long and negatively impact children in the long run. 

Even though the internet is filled with accounts of positive adoption stories, the emotional toll of being a child up for adoption in the system is not shared as often. Sometimes it may be because children cannot voice how they are feeling, while other times children take a while to open up and be vulnerable after caring solely for themselves for so long. This is especially true for children who are sensitive by nature. 

Robbie Gay is a 9-year-old boy who was adopted in 2018 by his parents Maria and Charles Gay. The family lives in Palm Coast, Florida, where Robbie spends much of his time caring for senior dogs at the Flagler County Humane Society. He spent most of his life in the foster system before being adopted, which took a big toll on his mental health. With the love and care from his parents, he was able to recover and heal from the trauma he went through and now spends his time caring for dogs who are generally not the first choice when it comes to adoption. 

Robbie has known what it is like to be the underdog. He had spent a large part of his life in foster care, which he had to enter because he was a "holy terror" before and faced terrible parental neglect, according to an Aug. 2020 CBS News story. "He knows what it feels like not to be loved and cared for. He's the most hopeful, optimistic and genuinely caring kid who has absolutely no reason to be that way," Robbie's adoptive mom, Maria, told the news outlet.

His love for senior dogs springs from a deep empathy he has for animals who are not the first choice when it comes to adoption. "People don't want older people and older dogs. They only want babies and puppies," Robbie said. He added, "There's something about old dogs that I just like." Robbie also understands the reality that many older dogs face and can see how it relates to his own situation. Speaking to KTVU, he said, "It's like kids in foster care, like, like, the pound to dogs is a group home to people." 

Maria also said that though he has come a long way since he was adopted, he had been unable to cry for a long time, which could have been due to the neglect he had been through. However, this changed when the family had to put down one of their dogs, Buffy. Even though he knew it was going to be a difficult thing, he wanted to hold Buffy until the very end.

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He finally let go and broke down when Buffy passed away. He told his mother afterward, "I know how it feels not to be loved or cared for and I don't want any animal of mine to feel that way." In the future, Robbie wants to help and adopt foster children as well, as per WBTV, but until then, his goal is to adopt and advocate for as many senior dogs as possible. Currently, his family owns six dogs, one of which was adopted as recently as 2020.

Even though he knows that adopting older dogs means that he has much less time with them, he has come to understand that love is not measured in time. "It's not how much you have had the dog. It's how much you love the dog," he said, as per KTVU. He also understands that his current family loves him despite being together for so little time. He told his adoptive mother, "Well you've only known me for two years but you love me like it's been forever."

Maria knows that her son is a deeply kind and caring person. "He is so aware that it could have gone totally differently for him. And in these older dogs Robbie has found a place to practice compassion," Maria told CBS News. Since 2020, Robbie has continued to volunteer at the humane society, where he spends most of his time advocating for older dogs. He has inspired many adoptions, and chances are he will change the lives of many dogs over the next few years. Robbie is truly one-of-a-kind!

What do you think of sweet Robbie's kind actions? Tell us what you think, and be sure to let your friends know about this heartwarming story as well.