The Leanin' Dog is written by K.A. Nuzum. The main character is a girl named Dessa Dean. Her father hunts for a living so she is almost always home alone during the day. One day, out of the blue, there is a scratching at the door it is a dog. = When her father gets home she tells him all about it.  Her father does not like the idea of a "wild" dog coming to their home and tells Dessa Dean to stay away from her.  But, a few days later the dog came back and Dessa Dean cant help but to go and get acquainted.  When father gets home he finds them sitting together and her father scares the dog away.  Dessa Dean tells her father that the dog was not about to hurt her. Her father agrees to let the dog come, and stay if she would like. Every day Dessa Dean called for the dog from her porch but she didn't come back. She was horribly sad.