SOLVED. Middle Grade Fiction. Lonely girl with ptsd (and a single dad) tries to tame a stray dog in her yard using liver

[Reader]

I remember reading this book in middle school, it was about this girl who had no friends in school, possibly suffered some sort of injury or surgery, had ptsd possibly, her dad may have been in the military but her mom died so she just lived with her dad. she finds a stray in her yard or somewhere close to home and tries to lure the dog and tame it specifically with chopped liver. she emotionally connects with the dog because they both suffer with anxiety or nervousness, or maybe aggression and so she spends a lot of time trying to grow closer to the stray.

[Reader]

Solved: “Listen!” by Stephanie Tolan. I should have searched just a bit further. She connects with the dog because they both are suffering from leg injuries.