Today We Rescued Your Dog
by Pat Closher
Today we rescued your dog. We don’t know where you got him from - maybe you saw him in a pet store window or maybe one of your neighbors bred a few litters a year just to make some vacation money or because they loved their dogs so much that of course they wanted to have puppies. We don’t know much about how you cared for him either, although our vet thought that for such a young dog, his teeth were in pretty bad shape.
by Pat Closher
Today we rescued your dog. We don’t know where you got him from - maybe you saw him in a pet store window or maybe one of your neighbors bred a few litters a year just to make some vacation money or because they loved their dogs so much that of course they wanted to have puppies. We don’t know much about how you cared for him either, although our vet thought that for such a young dog, his teeth were in pretty bad shape.
Did you know they were going to keep him outside? At least it was a pretty mild winter. There were no heavy snows, not much heavy winter rain and only a few days of bitter cold. But for all of those weeks he had no companionship, no care, and no love.
For some reason, your grandparents took him to the shelter. Maybe a neighbor complained about him or maybe their own health gave out or maybe they just got tired of him. You know the local shelter is a kill shelter, don’t you? You know that their own statistics indicate that about half of the dogs that enter are killed, don’t you? Maybe your grandparents thought he would be adopted quickly. He is a purebred, after all. No one was interested in him, though, maybe since he’s an adult dog and not a cute little puppy. No one contacted the purebred rescue group either. They probably would have placed him quickly, since he really is a great boy. The shelter is a clean place and they take good care of the dogs. They get good food and they’re bathed and brushed. It’s still a shelter though, and is noisy and chaotic and frightening. He spent two months there in that confusion, away from everyone and everything he had known.
One day, we saw him on the shelter web site. We called and asked about him. The shelter workers were so happy to hear from us and were delighted to agree to bring him to a local pet store where they do adoptions. Do you want to know why they were so accommodating? He was scheduled to be killed that afternoon. He didn’t know that, but the shelter workers certainly did. It hurt them and he felt that, so he knew something was wrong. All of a sudden, though, the shelter workers were happy and excited and so was he. They bathed him and brushed his coat. We think they probably told him this was it - his big chance, or maybe he just knew it somehow. When we met him, we all fell in love.
He had to go to the vet to be neutered, of course, but then he came home. He has his very own 13 year-old boy. You know, it’s almost like watching one of those old Lassie movies, seeing how well they’ve bonded. He’s got good food and his own toys. He’s taken on walks three times a day, is regularly groomed and is taken to the vet for needed care. We’ll be with him always, even if we have to make that last, difficult decision, because, you see, he is our dog and we are his family.
He has a good heart you know, but then he is a dog, so that’s to be expected. He’s probably forgiven you and, with a dog’s grace, doesn’t even remember you dumped him. He’d probably even be willing to greet you at the Rainbow Bridge. But you know what? He’ll greet us and go with us at the Bridge, and then he’ll be with us forever, because he’s our dog and we’re his family.
The way we heard the story, you moved out of state and didn’t want to take him with you. You left him at your grandparents. Maybe you thought a lively, handsome dog was just the thing for them, and under better circumstances it might have been. Maybe they have been cleaning up your messes for your entire life and an unwanted dog was just another mess to clean up.One day, we saw him on the shelter web site. We called and asked about him. The shelter workers were so happy to hear from us and were delighted to agree to bring him to a local pet store where they do adoptions. Do you want to know why they were so accommodating? He was scheduled to be killed that afternoon. He didn’t know that, but the shelter workers certainly did. It hurt them and he felt that, so he knew something was wrong. All of a sudden, though, the shelter workers were happy and excited and so was he. They bathed him and brushed his coat. We think they probably told him this was it - his big chance, or maybe he just knew it somehow. When we met him, we all fell in love.
He had to go to the vet to be neutered, of course, but then he came home. He has his very own 13 year-old boy. You know, it’s almost like watching one of those old Lassie movies, seeing how well they’ve bonded. He’s got good food and his own toys. He’s taken on walks three times a day, is regularly groomed and is taken to the vet for needed care. We’ll be with him always, even if we have to make that last, difficult decision, because, you see, he is our dog and we are his family.
He has a good heart you know, but then he is a dog, so that’s to be expected. He’s probably forgiven you and, with a dog’s grace, doesn’t even remember you dumped him. He’d probably even be willing to greet you at the Rainbow Bridge. But you know what? He’ll greet us and go with us at the Bridge, and then he’ll be with us forever, because he’s our dog and we’re his family.
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With great sadness and heartbreak we said goodbye to our sweet little Iris on 01/20/2012. This was one of the hardest decisions of our lives, but we knew that it was her time to go and we did not want her to be in pain. We feel very blessed to have had Iris in our lives, even if only for a short time. Iris was such a special pup and we miss her so very much. She touched our lives in so many ways and we cannot express how grateful we are that you, Alicia, took a chance on us. We could never wrap our minds around why anyone would have or even could have dropped her off at the pound. Iris had to have been one of the sweetest if not the sweetest dog ever! Her personality and little quirks, like grunting like a little piggy and trying to eat Duke's toenail clippings to the way she would tuck her little butt and take off running around the yard and house or how she thought clothes and blankets on laundry day were her bed, made her one of the most amazing lovable pups! Anywhere we went, people automatically fell in love with Iris. We had several friends and family members ask why we chose a deaf boxer, and I would always tell them, well, Jesse and Iris kind of chose each other. And I would always tell them the story of how Iris became a member of our family...How we had originally inquired about a few other boxers wanting to find a companion for our other boxer Duke and that Duke did not make the drive to Houston with us, so we had to make the decision without him. And the day we went to the rescue we had no idea we would be coming home with a deaf boxer. We were introduced to a few boxers, but did not feel they were the right fit. But sweet little Iris was a whole other story. Jesse knew from the moment he had seen her she was the one. Even before we knew anything about her or was introduced to her, he knew Iris was the one! When we were finally introduced to Iris, Jesse knelt down, Iris stepped up onto his lap, and gave him a little kiss. At that moment, she stole my heart and I knew she was the one. I also knew in that moment there was no way that we would be able to leave without her. And the fact that Iris was unable to hear, never mattered to us. She was a very smart dog and even though she could not hear our voices, we felt she always knew when we were talking to her. Iris instantly became a part of our family. Within the first 24 hrs, Duke was teaching her how to sneak onto our bed at night and how he liked to wake us up for breakfast. She was like our little shadow, always following us around the house...especially on house cleaning days. Iris was truly one of the best and will forever be in our hearts. Our sweet, sweet little Iris. You stole our hearts and made our family whole! No words can truly express our love for you. We miss you so very much. Love Mommy (Marie), Daddy (Jesse), & Duke
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