One of the thrills for me on my recent trip to Barbados was meeting and being greeted by a dog during my morning beach/boardwalk strolls.
I didn’t meet a lot of dogs on the island but there were 2 (accompanied by their owners) that I saw a few times in the early hours of the day. One was quite elderly and it was sad and painful to watch it hobble along the beach beside its ever watchful mistress.
I was thrilled beyond measure when this dog went out of its way to greet me one morning. It even pressed itself against my leg while I was petting it. Swoon!
This encounter flared up the pilot light of my dog-love furnace. So much so that I have started stalking area humane society adopt-a-dog pages, my thinking being that I could adopt an older dog NOW, that wouldn’t need so much care and training as a new puppy (my original “someday when I am retired” plan).
Unfortunately any suitable dogs I found (in terms of small size and being less allergenic i.e. non-shedding) were loaded with lots of baggage. There were 2 rescues from a puppy mill – neither were house-trained, or knew how to walk on a leash, and one was blind. The recommendations from the humane society were that these dogs needed to be brought into homes that already had a dog, to show them how to be a pet.
Then there was another little fellow, who was used to living in an apartment, whose owner passed away. He needed expensive daily medication to be administered and was prone to seizures. I thought yeah, there’s potential there…and then I saw that his adoption was pending. OK, moving on…
Moving on, there was nothing else that would have been suitable for my home and current lifestyle. Which I guess is for the best. I don’t have a fenced yard and I live downtown, in a second floor apartment.
I also have a jam-packed year in terms of work projects on my plate. Which means there will even more days when I have to leave early/work late, and come in on weekends to get caught up on regular work. Activities not conducive to pet ownership. Especially not pets that need extra care. Like rescues or a new puppy.
Yet, for a few brief moments, I thought this could be my Year of the Dog.
Oh, I’ll probably keep stalking those Humane Society web pages, but I doubt I’ll find that perfect low-maintenance, non-shedding little dog of my dreams. She already exists, but only in my dreams.
Yesterday was Lucy’s birthday. She would have been 18.
Rock on,
The WB
Oh, I know that searching, yearning feeling all too well, Deb. In my case that led to not one but two rescues, both of whom are demanding tons of time, attention and love. I don’t begrudge any of that. They bring enormous pleasure to my days and I feel so good seeing them, Shylah in particular, make tiny gains like eating out of a bowl after a YEAR of living with me (see my last post).
But, and this is a big but, I wouldn’t stand a chance of doing this if I weren’t retired AND my dogs have definitely constrained my life for the foreseeable future. For example, I can’t travel for an overnight anywhere. Shylah, who is a rescue from Mexico, is afraid of my mother, who lives with me, and she runs away from the home of the professional dog person we walk with once or twice a week.
However, if you are determined, if you can’t let go of the dream right now, perhaps don’t haunt the Humane Society pages. Check out some of the Seniors for Seniors pet organizations. There are so many places that specialize in dogs for special situations.
If you look in the Tribe Stories section of my site, you’ll see posts about my rescues and about what led to them coming into my life. That might help you decide. And read your cards, Deb. Give yourself some time to be sure the dog of your dreams should be coming into your life now.
Lots of unasked for advice.
Happy Birthday to the memory of Mizz Lucy.
Thanks Karen! I will check out your Tribe story about your rescues and look into the organization you mentioned. As much as I yearn for a dog, when I get more rational and less “feely” about it, it really is not yet the right time. But I can dream and scheme, and live vicariously through other dog owners’ stories in the meantime!
It may still be possible that this is your Year of the Dog. It’s still very early in the year and your heart is open, willing, and in spite of your buts, it sounds like you are ready ๐
Anything is possible, Joanne. You are so right. The (dog) stars could align for me if I keep my heart and mind open. Thanks pal.
Hi Deb,
I’ve been thinking about my earlier comment and about Joanne’s comment above, and I think Joanne is absolutely right. The heart knows what it wants.
You might have read in one of my Shylah posts that I gave up a dog, a purebred puppy. About two months after doing that, I had a dream of a dog. It was a very detailed dream. I pictured the dog exactly. Some months later, after I got Shylah, my dream dog came into my life. She was exactly the dog I had pictured. I can’t imagine now not having both Shylah and Toffee.
So that dog of your dreams, Deb? She or he is real and making her way to you. I believe that.
Karen
๐
Thanks Karen. I believe my dog is out there. It’s just a question of timing. I think I’ll be visiting some mini-Schnauzer breeders in Ontario on my wanderings this summer. I’ve bookmarked several as worth exploring. If I have to put that much work into a rescue/adopted dog, I may as well go for a puppy again.
There will be a time when you know it’s right – or you’ll see the dog and know it’s the right time.