Three years ago tomorrow...
Tomorrow, on February 9th, 2001 my sweet girl, Molly was born.
Back then, I didn't even know what a Collie was! I just referred to them as "Lassie dogs". I had been bugging my parents for another dog for years, when our Dachshund, Todo (RB) passed away. My mom grew up with Collies and Shelties as a child. She'd show me pictures of her old dogs, and I always found them to be beautiful. I found pictures of Collies on the Internet, and made little "signs" and posted them all around the house. :D
Then, one day, my mom came in and woke me up early and said "Hurry up and get dressed I've got a surprise for you." Not knowing what it was, I quickly took a shower, changed and ran over to where they were. She had a newspaper clipping in her hand that advertised a Female, Sable and White Collie pup. We were making the trip up to see that morning! :)
So, my dad, mom, sister, and I made the 3 hour drive up to see her. Along the way, we stopped at a restaurant called "Bob's Big Boy" to eat. I wouldn't eat anything, because I was too excited and was worried that someone else might have "beat us to her" if we wasted any more time.
When we FINALLY got up to the house, the breeder's father was there and told us Sally, (the breeder) would be back in a bit. So, we sat down on the couch, and I played with the family's male Pomeranian. We waited for about an hour, and she still didn't show. My parents were getting angry, and wanted to leave. But, just then she walked through the door. She led us out in the backyard, where I saw the parents of my soon to be baby. After a few minutes of petting them, I saw a metal cage in the far end of the backyard, with a dog house in it. I walked over to find a very shy, scared, Collie inside. The breeder opened the latch to the door, and literally had to drag her out so we could take a look at her. I saw the fear in her eyes when she was dragged out. She was huddled in the corner, and flinched when we tried to pet her.
My mom was saying to my dad "I'm not sure if it's a good idea to get her...but we can't leave her here.."
With that, my parents and sister went into the house, to sign the papers. I stayed out with her. She was placed back into the cage, and I stuck my fingers through the wire to see if she would lick me. She was cautious at first, but she did it; I had a huge smile on my face. "Molly" I said, "My dog."
Molly was 5 months old at the time when we brought her home, and the first "puppy" I raised. She was the last of the litter, and was born with an umbilical hernia. When we first brought her to the vet as a check up, I was SO scared about what the hernia would do to her. Thankfully, it could be taken out when she was spayed. She still has a few "social issues" but we're working on it. I don't know what kind of life she had before we got her, but I hope she's happy with me. She may not be the best bred dog, have the best lines, be the friendliest, or be "show quality" but I love her, and wouldn't trade her for the world. I do believe she was "meant" for me.
Happy 3rd Birthday Molly girl. I hope to have you for many, many, more years to come.
