Please Let this Work
My mom has been talking about getting a dog for a long time, but it wasn't until after she began to get over Max's death that she began looking.
On Saturday I took her to get a manicure and a pedicure as part of a belated Mother's Day present (she's always complaining that she's XX years old and never had a manicure). Afterwards we walked down to the pet store where they had a bunch of dogs outside that afternoon.
Usually when we walk by the dogs there's just a bunch of barking, nothing too breathtaking. But this time there was a guy who actually caught our eye. He was calm, he took his treats gently, and he was so unusual colored and speckled; we'd never seen a dog quite like him before.
Apparently he was a Catahoula mix. I'd never heard of that breed before, and I generally try to keep up on dog breeds. Catahoulas are no Golden Retrievers, they're more independent but still very loyal, and this dog seemed really perfect for what my parents were looking for - a calm companion who won't jump all over you when you walk in the door. This dog was about 1.5 years old, just passed being a puppy.
She filled out the application on Sunday, and the volunteers had all told us that there hadn't been any competing interest in the dog. This morning she emailed them just to make sure they'd received the application. They said that they had it, but that the dog would be going home this weekend.
That wasn't very descriptive... we didn't know if that meant someone else had already adopted him or if he'd be going home with us. After a few more emails begging for clarification we found out that the dog was indeed adopted by someone else.
The first feelings were frustration - we'd been told there was no one else interested in the dog. We were preparing ourselves, getting comfortable with him and the idea of having a dog, talking about buying a crate, talking about names.
I knew that something like this could very likely set my mom off to the whole idea and just make her frustrated. I quickly looked for other options so that she'd know there were plenty of other options out there. There was one dog in particular that I absolutely loved, a very young Golden Retriever/Chow Chow mix. My advisor in college had this type of mix, and he frequently brought his dog, Leo, to class. Leo would sprawl out in the front of the room, listening. Sometimes he'd get up and ask for love from the students in the front row; I remember thinking how awesome he was and how I'd like a Chow/Golden mix. Judging from the pictures, this dog was beautiful, but I never thought my parents would go for it.
But they did! Even my dad (who doesn't get excited about these things) suddenly got proactive and started calling and emailing the rescue group. They told us that if we were interested we could submit an application online, and since it's early in the week we could possibly get someone to bring the dog over to our home to see how things go... if everything went well, after a mandatory training class Friday evening we could take the dog home.
I told myself not to get excited again, but here I am jumping out of my skin! My family has never had a dog, though both my parents had dogs when they were younger. I have always wanted a dog, and I anticipate the experience of owning one with boyfriend frequently. I know I'll feel absolutely horrible if someone has already adopted this dog or is further along in the process, especially because she's basically the dog I've dreamed off... she's completely beautiful. The ad says she's sweet, shy, and gets along well with other animals.
Please, please, please let this work out. Please. I think that this pup would be wonderful for my family and that we could give her a lot of love. I try not to ask for much, but if you pray...
On Saturday I took her to get a manicure and a pedicure as part of a belated Mother's Day present (she's always complaining that she's XX years old and never had a manicure). Afterwards we walked down to the pet store where they had a bunch of dogs outside that afternoon.
Usually when we walk by the dogs there's just a bunch of barking, nothing too breathtaking. But this time there was a guy who actually caught our eye. He was calm, he took his treats gently, and he was so unusual colored and speckled; we'd never seen a dog quite like him before.
Apparently he was a Catahoula mix. I'd never heard of that breed before, and I generally try to keep up on dog breeds. Catahoulas are no Golden Retrievers, they're more independent but still very loyal, and this dog seemed really perfect for what my parents were looking for - a calm companion who won't jump all over you when you walk in the door. This dog was about 1.5 years old, just passed being a puppy.
She filled out the application on Sunday, and the volunteers had all told us that there hadn't been any competing interest in the dog. This morning she emailed them just to make sure they'd received the application. They said that they had it, but that the dog would be going home this weekend.
That wasn't very descriptive... we didn't know if that meant someone else had already adopted him or if he'd be going home with us. After a few more emails begging for clarification we found out that the dog was indeed adopted by someone else.
The first feelings were frustration - we'd been told there was no one else interested in the dog. We were preparing ourselves, getting comfortable with him and the idea of having a dog, talking about buying a crate, talking about names.
I knew that something like this could very likely set my mom off to the whole idea and just make her frustrated. I quickly looked for other options so that she'd know there were plenty of other options out there. There was one dog in particular that I absolutely loved, a very young Golden Retriever/Chow Chow mix. My advisor in college had this type of mix, and he frequently brought his dog, Leo, to class. Leo would sprawl out in the front of the room, listening. Sometimes he'd get up and ask for love from the students in the front row; I remember thinking how awesome he was and how I'd like a Chow/Golden mix. Judging from the pictures, this dog was beautiful, but I never thought my parents would go for it.
But they did! Even my dad (who doesn't get excited about these things) suddenly got proactive and started calling and emailing the rescue group. They told us that if we were interested we could submit an application online, and since it's early in the week we could possibly get someone to bring the dog over to our home to see how things go... if everything went well, after a mandatory training class Friday evening we could take the dog home.
I told myself not to get excited again, but here I am jumping out of my skin! My family has never had a dog, though both my parents had dogs when they were younger. I have always wanted a dog, and I anticipate the experience of owning one with boyfriend frequently. I know I'll feel absolutely horrible if someone has already adopted this dog or is further along in the process, especially because she's basically the dog I've dreamed off... she's completely beautiful. The ad says she's sweet, shy, and gets along well with other animals.
Please, please, please let this work out. Please. I think that this pup would be wonderful for my family and that we could give her a lot of love. I try not to ask for much, but if you pray...
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