October: Adopt a Shelter Dog Month
October is Adopt A Shelter Dog month! Yep, these sweet babies get an entire month of love and why not? They need us; we need them. Get to adopting!
Every single dog we have brought into our home has been a shelter baby, or a foster, as in Dexter's case.
Dexter, oh our sweet Dexter.
For those new here, Dex is our almost 5-year-old pup. I like to call him our empty nest pooch. Boy calls, asks what's new, and gets regaled with the latest Dexter silliness. Yep, we've become those people.
Husband and I love our animals and after Percy passed (our beloved dog before Dex), we just couldn't bring ourselves to consider another dog. It was the first time in our married lives that we were dogless. That long sad spell lasted two years.
Then one day, Husband and I spied a scared blonde pup hugging the back of a crate at a PetsMart foster event. We were told he was the last of his litter-mates. The rest of the pups had been wiggly and slobbery; Dex not so much. He was cautious and worried and overwhelmed. We were told he would be hard to place because he lacked typical puppy behavior.
Husband was smitten from the moment he pulled Dex out of the crate. Me not so much. My heart was still broken over Percy. I didn't want a puppy. Not yet.
But, how could I deny Husband's love, and need, for this freaked-out baby? I couldn't.
Dex was ours the next afternoon. There was no time to think. No time to reason with Husband. No time to build my case for a no.
Husband's heart was ready for Dex, so we adopted another pound puppy, in a long tradition of bringing home mutts.
The thing is, Dex turned out to be the best thing to mend my broken heart. In the beginning I resisted, but once Dexter was in our home, once he looked to me for protection and comfort, my heart was his.
I give you Dexter, and defy you to not love him, too.
First Day Home: Not sure what is happening.
Unsure of the yard. His new yard!
Turns out, after he warms up, he lets me put stuff on him and poops out magic tennis balls. Handy!
I knew putting things on him as a pup would payoff! Dexter humors me, but is not amused. Where is that wascally wabbit?!
To offset his annoyance, I offer to play ball. The tail indicates he's in.
While he loves to play ball, he refuses to lift weights with me. STOP ASKING!
Working at home can be a challenge. Some days, I read my essays to him as I laugh hysterically, amusing myself with my cleverness. Dexter gives it to me straight. Meh.
Fine, not funny.
But some days I hit paydirt! HA! I knew that was funny!
Regardless of his shaky beginning, I think you can see how Dexter has blossomed. He's confident, smart, playful and most of all loves us with everything he's got, as we do him.
Turns out he was the right pound puppy at the right time. I can't imagine our lives without him and I almost missed out on the fun.
If you're considering a new addition to your family, I highly recommend rescuing a dog from your local animal shelter or foster family.
Who knows, while you think you're rescuing a dog in need, maybe you'll be like me and your pup will actually rescue you.
So sorry , forgot to tell you Dex is so adorable. Who could not want to have that little guy to hug/love on?
They are so special and so loving. My mother in law told me once I loved our dog more than I love my kids. Well sometimes maybe, lol. She was referring to the cocker spaniel. She wasn't a dog lover.
I'm just overwhelmed at this post. So gratifying to see someone of your status advocate for creatures who ask so little from us, give so much in return, but are so often overlooked. THANK YOU!
Rescue pets only for us, always, since Day One! Our current is a lab-shep mix, taken from a hoarder. She'd been tied to the carcass of a car tending eight puppies in a hole she'd dug for herself. Today, she weighs thirty pounds more and asks nothing other than to lounge on her side of the couch, enjoying every comfortable second of her new life with mommy and daddy in her sight.
I sympathize with those who have lost a pet and claim they cannot accept a replacement. But I say that the best way to honor that good memory is to give a second chance to another - a living testimony to the joy that the honored pet brought to a family!
And finally, it occurred to me one day that humans are the only species who will take in another, knowing full well that their hearts will someday be broken by loss, yet are are so loving and unselfish that the same thing is repeated over and over again!
Dex was a field puppy when he was caught. His mom had dug out a hole under an abandoned trailer to protect her pups. He was the last to be caught because he didn't trust the food or tricks to catch him. I love him even more because of that. He was one freaked out little ball of fur when we brought him home, but as you can see, he adjusted to our shenanigans!