well done you

.. please search for her family before keeping her,we like to make up storys to make sense of things....if anybody had managed to get my Kaos when he was awol,they would of thought he had been abused....and nothing is further than the truth!.
good luck and give her a cuddle from here

Thanks everyone I will keep you posted. As of right now the neighborhood knows that we found a dog and we are trying to find the owners. I asked around the whole neighborhood that we found her in if they had seen her before.. no one had seen of her before we showed her to them.. They said someone might have dumped her.. the paint on her nails I stated was found was worn as well like it had been on for a few weeks and worn off.. We think she has pup in her she adapted well to us giving her the name of Abby. Even after a day she is still skittish around people.. when greeted she lays low and tucks her tail and curls up in a small ball.. Maybe she is still adjusting to so many new people.. but the last dog I had also showed these signs.. when found in an abusive home... I wont accuse her of being abused though. I understand everyone's point of view.. Right now she seems to be more attached to me than my boyfriend.. if I leave she looks or whines for me. we must break that habit sometime. We left her out at night not knowing whether she was house broken or not. .. she was.. and she knows the basic commands of come, sit, and kind of knows lay down. She is ok around my boyfriends cat so far.. she doesn't show any sign of aggression.. just whines and yips at him hasn't charged or growled at him yet. We are still observing her She is soo sweet to those she gets attached to.. so far she is growing on my boyfriend but mostly stays around me.. she lays next to my chair or under the desk when I am at the computer and watches me. She last night was laying in the dog bed we got for her next to the bed, after my boyfriend fell asleep she jumped up next to me and curled up next to my head and fell asleep.

Also noted when we found Abby : Nails- worn paint, not well taken care of..length of nails was longer than they should ever be. Collar- stunk really bad.. was worn down by use and looked weather worn. it also was almost too tight on her. Fur/Coat- dirty.. she definitely needed a bath , she had some fleas which we are now treating with shampoo.. etc. she had a trash odor to her.. along with mud etc.
Also as I have said she didn't really take to any other person she was running and scared. it took a lady 10 mins to just get her in one spot but took me 3 to get her in my arms... she is still somewhat skittish with me but warming up to me more.

Whats the best way to tell what breed she is? And how can I tell her age, Later we will be taking her to the vet. We also can't wait to see if she is fixed or not what a fun surprise it will be if we don't know haha. I won't mind either way I wont ever use her for breeding IF I keep her and I will only get her fixed due to fear if she gets out and gets with a male she gets preg.. She so far stays close to the house.. she kinda treats it as her home already I know that probably isn't good incase we find her owners but I think its good to know I am trusted by her.

Please keep some helpful comments coming and thanks everyone for reading this post!!

If her toenails are painted, I'm betting that she does have a home and is simply lost. I would make flyers and take them to local vets and pet stores. I would make sure your local animal control authority has her description and your details. I would take her to a vet or shelter and have her scanned for a microchip. She may be flinchy because she is scared and traumatized by being lossed. Its possible she has a lovely home and owner who is missing her right now. Please go through the proper channels.

The painted nails and the fact that she prefers you over your boyfriend, it sounds like she did at one point have a caring female owner. Also seems like she is used to living in a home environment. She may have been running around lost for a long time, judging from her condition, so I would imagine she is no longer near the place she lived. Who knows what has happened to her if she has been living loose. Getting her scanned for a chip might answer your questions, but don't limit your search to the local area.

Please get you local vet to scan her and perhaps contact dog lost too.

i am actually doing all the scanning etc. today. We already have fliers up in the area that we found her in and the owners are asking around further in the neighborhood.. We are doing what we can to find the rightful owner before considering to keep her. Thanks everyone I am glad more people out there than just me care!!

It's clear from the way that you are writing that this little dog will have a home with you if the owners do not come forward.

If her old owners DO turn up, then there is little that you can do - but if they are loving and good people then although you may be sad to let her go at least you will know that she has a decent home.

Either way - this sweetie cannot lose it seems!!!

If the owners can't be traced then I am so glad it was you who brought her home where she will be safe and much loved

Thanks everyone I agree. I will be sad to see her go if her owners are found. she is a real sweetheart. But like everyone says at least she will be in a loving home rather than outside on the streets. I am on my way now to get her checked for a microchip. after that she is going to the vet to see about the nails being fixed and making sure she is healthy that way I know she is getting everything she needs, Thanks everyone for the support and talking I won't mind more comments Love to hear from everyone!!

If we don't end up keeping her due to the owners showing up this Saturday I am going to look at pups.. and If we find her owners like I stated above.. We will be getting one of the pups. Please everyone pray for Abby's best interest and that she might find her owner. I really hope to find them.. I would hate to be missing such a good girl.

A little word of warning if someone contacts you claiming to be the owner, don't just let them in to see her so they can say yes its thier dog.
Ask them some questions first that they wouldn't know the answer to unless it was thier dog. Little distinguishing marks etc.
There are too many unscupulous people out there who would like a chance of a free dog they could use as a breeding machine or even worse as a bait dog for thier fighting dogs and some of these won't look like they fight dogs they may have a nice innocent looking mother and daughter come round to try and get the dog for them.
Don't want to worry you but it is a common problem.