The Story of our Dogs
“Saving one dog will not change the world, but surely for that one dog, the world will change forever.” ― Karen Davison
If you have ever been to a shelter or even seen those terribly sad Sarah McLachlan rescue commercials you know that looking into the eyes of an ownerless dog is heartbreaking. We have all felt those tugs on our heart strings. Since we have some experience with adopting/rescuing dogs we thought we'd share their stories.
Hilary's Dogs
Our first dog, Chance, was also truly the best dog. We adopted him from a small shelter in our area. He was seven years old and a mixture of lab, golden retriever, and chow. Chance lived with us for four great years. Sadly he passed away two years ago. Please do not listen to the horror stories about shelter dogs. Chance got along with every person and animal, he never barked, and never had to be on a leash. He will always be our first and best.
However, there was a different dog that called out to us after Chance crossed the rainbow bridge. Only two short weeks later we found Nick who we would later rename Mackey. Mackey is worlds different than Chance. Mackey barks nonstop, he ALWAYS needs a leash, and wants to chase every person or animal. He is still a great dog, but he definitely tests our patience. All of that being said, we would not trade him for another dog. He had been in the shelter for six months of his first 18 months of life. To think of where he might be now is just too sad to fathom.
Addie's Dogs
Landry came to us first. We had just lost two dogs, Ema to old age, and Stewart to health complications. We had a dog, Shelby (a beagle mix of unknown breeds), that had been with us as long as Ema. I wasn't ready to add another fur baby to the mix and felt that Shelby deserved a little attention of her own for awhile. My husband felt differently.
I was shopping with a friend and got a few text messages from my husband, who happened to be at the animal shelter.....bad, bad, bad news when it comes to my husband. He can not say no to a stray! And so Landry came into our lives...I resisted (for a while) until I can't imagine life without the little guy!
Lila came to us a couple years later...Shelby was one old girl by then and
I was very serious about not wanting 3 dogs at once...ever again! Ha! My husband found her eating macaroni salad at the golf course and was just sure she had an owner looking frantically for her...apparently, he was right...the owners were us! We tried (me more than him) to find said owners. My husband sent me a looooong email detailing why we should keep her...and I sent him an equally long one back telling him why we should not....and then a ping in my inbox told me, "Too late, I already told the vet we would take her. Can you pick her up before 5?" Well, yes.
We have lost three beloved dogs to the Rainbow Bridge...Ema, Stewart, and Shelby. The stories could go on for pages as they were all characters in their own right....and we still laugh and smile about them today. But it does heal the heart to have 2 current fur babies to shower with love, hugs, and dog treats.
Shannon's Dogs
After we lost Bella, I was sure there would be no more pets for this family! Apparently no one believed me...They turned out to be correct! Almost one year after Bella made that journey over the rainbow bridge, Teine joined our family.
Due to my allergies and the hope of finding a dog that did not shed as much as Bella had, our family agreed that an Irish Terrier would be the perfect pup for us! It just so happened that a darling little girl became available at the end of January 2015. Our son Sean Patrick felt she should have an Irish name and he suggested Teine which means "fire" in Irish (perfect to accompany her red, fiery coat).
Teine's current home was in Missouri. I told my husband that we just needed to go past St. Louis. It turned out that we needed to travel almost to Arkansas! My husband was not happy about the distance but Teine walked up to us and stole our hearts!
She is a precious baby...Not too big, Not too small. She loves to walk and learn new tricks. She loves her family and we love her. It has even been suggested by our human children that she may be spoiled.
In this case, I think we were the ones who were saved by Teine coming in to our lives. If only people exhibited the true loyalty, love, and enthusiasm for life that Teine exhibits. Lucky us... she brings us great joy, every single day!
