worth the wait

I have wanted to adopt a little dog for several years now, but for one reason or the other, we've had to wait. First to convince Dan, then for a house of our own, a fence to be built, the "right timing". As the Christmas break approached, and with Dan home to help keep a watchful eye, we felt that it was time to start the search.

We knew we wanted to find our new little friend at a local shelter, because there are just too many unwanted pets in this world, in my opinion. So I'd been keeping my eye on the shelter's website, watching for a small, fluffy pup with big black eyes and a cute button nose. One day, while scrolling through all the homeless dogs, a new one popped up: a Maltese. A little ball of fur I could call my own. I phoned Dan with great excitement, and got the green light to explore this possibility.

After picking Cris and Brooklyn up from school, I told them the news, and invited them to take the adventure with me. We'd never been to a shelter, so we had a good talk about what we could expect there. We knew it would be difficult to see all those faces, waiting for their "forever homes". And it was. The smell of so many animals in one place was overwhelming, the sound of their cries and pleas for attention deafening at times. There was a big board that displayed the numbers of animals taken in, adopted out, and ultimately finding the end of their lives in this place. The workers were friendly, but very overworked. We asked one if the sweet little Maltese was still available, but were told that no, he'd found a home. "The little ones go quick," she told us. I knew I was being picky about the type and size of dog I was looking for, and was turning a blind eye to the larger dogs in need, but felt that a smaller dog would be a better fit.

We found a door marked with an "Adoptable Dogs" sign, and we turned the knob to open it. A long, cage-lined hall stood in front of us, and we tentatively stepped through. On the left side, several Pit Bulls looked out from behind the bars. They didn't appear to be too interested in us, barely raising their eyes to see who was coming through next. To the right, two smaller cages were stacked one on top of the other. The one on top held a tiny white dog, curled up tightly on top of a pillow. We saw that he was a Chihuahua, and I dismissed him as an option, having heard that they can be a difficult breed. Below him was a black Collie mix, very vocal and active. His info sheet stated that he was younger, and playful. He was cute, but I didn't want to bite off more than I could chew.

We continued on down the canine-laden hall, turned the corner to find even more large, unwanted dogs. I was beginning to feel my optimism fade away. We turned back the way we came, and stopped in front of the stacked cages once again. The small Chi barely acknowledged us, but he looked so vulnerable lying there, less than 3 feet away from those huge dogs known for their violence. According to his clipboard, he was estimated to be 8 years old, was seemingly well trained, liked to cuddle, and was found by the side of the road a week before. The kids and I looked at each other, and we agreed that we'd at least like to give him a chance.

After asking permission to take him from his cage, I carefully unlocked his wire door, and tried to coax him out. He just shivered and ducked his little head, not even meeting my eyes. I let him smell my hand, then ran it down the length of his small back, trying to let him know I meant him no harm. Then I slipped my hands around him and lifted him out. "Awww!" Both kids immediately melted at the sight of his little face. We took him into the socialization room, where I placed him on the floor to get an idea of his personality. He started nosing around, but didn't lift his leg-- bonus points, for sure. The kids were growing more and more excited, and the fact that he didn't yip, growl, bite or scratch made me want to know more about him. We decided to take him out to the play yard.

Once outside, the little guy immediately found a bush to sprinkle, and this show of good potty training moved him to the top of my list. We let him run and explore, and his sprightly gate, little bent ear, and bright eyes won us over. Another call to Dan was placed, and the adoption process was begun. In order to fill out the paperwork, we had to put the little man back in his cage. The Pit Bulls were riled up, filling the hall with their growls and fierce barking. Our prospective pup cowered, pawing at the cage, crying out to us as we walked away. We knew we had to hurry and get him out of there as soon as we could, so we dotted all of our i's, crossed our t's, and in just a matter of minutes, our family had grown by one.

It has been several weeks since we walked into the animal shelter; weeks spent getting to know our first family dog. Chico is a cuddle-bug who loves to explore his new neighborhood, nap on fluffy pillows, and munch on liver treats. The transition has been easy, he has adapted well. He lets us know when he needs to go outside, he is pretty quiet, and he sleeps through the night in his little bed in the master bedroom. He takes us on long nighttime walks, and it is really very amusing to see how he thinks he is so big and mighty, guarding "his" people from harm.

We are looking forward to many years caring for our new pet, and hope we are making his life as enjoyable as he is making ours.