Sadie is a little lady with a storied past. She followed us home one Sunday evening while we were out walking around our neighborhood. We decided to keep her overnight and gave her a bath to rid her of the worst flea-infestation I have ever seen, and then we got her set up in a crate on the front porch for the night.
The next day, my honey took her to the vet and had her immunized and treated for a multitude of other parasites. We continued to hang onto her for a few more days. She is only 4 months old and full of as much love as exuberance, being a lab (and possibly border collie) mix. Considering that we had not planned to get a dog and we have very little yard, by the end of the week, I had decided to take her to a local no-kill shelter to hopefully be adopted by a loving owner. So, with tears in my eyes, I turned her and all her medicines, leash, and harness over to the nice woman at the shelter.
A few days went by. I started checking the shelter's facebook page to look for updates about her. She was officially available for adoption. Seeing her face on the computer caused my tears to resume . It's silly, I know, but I got so upset over giving her up. It felt like my heart was torn from my chest. I missed her terribly. Despite her youthful energy, she was also extremely smart and loving. I knew that as an adult dog, she would be just perfect for my family.
On Saturday, one week after I had surrendered her, the shelter was hosting an adoption fair at Petco. I had to go there to get supplies for my cats and told myself that if she was available, I would see about getting her back. In the meantime, we had spoken with some friends who are professional dog trainers about the possibility of working with her intensively, and they agreed to do this as a favor to us.
So, I anxiously went to Petco, and there she was, sitting in the crate chewing on a bone. I let her out of the cage and she began kissing me all over and wagging her tail furiously. "Where have you been," she seemed to ask me. I started getting teary eyed again as I told the worker that I was the person who had found and then surrendered her. I said that I was interested in getting her back, and the worker made a phone call to the owner of the shelter who agreed to let me adopt her officially.
So now, we have a puppy in the house. She has changed my life dramatically. We are diligent about twice daily walks and chew toys and giving her little tasks to keep her from being bored. She is gentle with my cats, although sometimes she is driven to chase them until they reach a higher ground. I guess falling in love is always inconvenient and complicates things, but every time she sits on my foot and looks up at me with those deep, brown eyes, I realize how smitten I am.
Until next time...
Anne
