How did you get your dog?

[Corinna]

Ok no one get mad but, after rescuing lots of dogs it was my turn to pick a dog. I spent 3 years looking for a breeder whom I agreed with the way they raised pups. Finally found Merlin and the lady did MORE than I required!
I wanted a dog I knew how it would be according to breed. I also wanted to show obediance, tracking,and search and resque. It was a long search but worth it for my sofa spud.

[Iditarodfan]

Rachel, Hi from Bea in Washington with Molly G. I finally found your forum topic,
"How Did You Get Your Dog?" Every dog has his or her story & I will be back when I have more time to tell about Lucky, YoYo, Shamu & Molly G. Until then Happy Trails to all dog teams, dog & guardians.

[Iditarodfan]

Rachel, Hi from Bea in Washington with Molly G. I finally found your forum topic,
"How Did You Get Your Dog?" Every dog has his or her story & I will be back when I have more time to tell about Lucky, YoYo, Shamu & Molly G. Until then Happy Trails to all dog teams, dog & guardians.

[bugmom]

What a way to celebrate a monday! with all these great tails a waggin' of happiness found!!
Although Bug was a rescue dog too - her tail wiggles just a bit a different.
I live in the mountains without a lot of traffic or noise so when spring time comes around my doors and windows are open. Well, five years ago i was sitting at the computer working on what should have been a relaxing saturday when i noticed something brown out of the corner of my eye eating the cat food...at the time the cats i had were tabby, white and white & grey. when ever i'd turn my head the brown became a blur and disappeared. After a time i was able to turn quicker than the blur could move and discovered a scrawny dog eating the cat food. and then it darted back outside. i had an extra bag of "rejected" cat food so took it outside and sat with the food in hand, and sat, talking ever so gently to the little wreck that resembled a dog. it took about 45 minutes but she finally came and ate out of my hand. You could count her bones she was underweight, she was limping, and one eye was so swollen that it looked as though it was a large golfball. She needed help!
I took her to my landlord's home and asked if he had recently adopted her. He said no - looked at the dog and said "go home" (now it was obvious to me the dog had no home!)So i asked if i could keep her. He said sure. So i picked this little critter up (all 35 lbs) and carried her home.
The next day it was to the vet and the pet supply store. the vet in turn called the dog "my little soul dog" cuz from the start we were not to be parted. The guys at the pet shop still talk about the first day i came in with her. two days later she was visiting a specialist for her eye. And thats when the truth came out - he said "I will tell you about this, if you promise not to find the owners or return it." well, she and i were one by then so a promise like that wasn't to hard... seems the doctor had treated this dog three times before and that the owners didn't want to have the surgery needed for the dog - instead they claimed she was lost...this doctor new better cuz hunting dogs don't "get lost" less than two miles from their home...you guessed - her owners had turned her out in the middle of winter cuz she had a medical condition (fixable!) that they didn't want to deal with. (Some people!!)
Since then, bug and i have become inseparable. Bug now has a fake eye. She still has some flashbacks, hates men wearing baseball caps , is terrified of water falling on her - but loves to swim (i think the rain reminds her of not getting back inside), and is on the petite side - but gosh...like all of with your dogs - i love her dearly, totally and completely. I sometimes feel as though she rescued me.
She is my first dog - the lessons i've learned...but thats another story for another day!
Thank you for letting me share

[jackiesdaisy1935]

bugmom, that is a wonderful story with a happy ending. I am so glad you kept Bug, her story made my cry, I still at my age do not understand how some people can be so cruel.
You two must be the very best of friends.

[karen israel]

I just LOVED everyone's story! They were wonderful! I wanted a dog my whole life-I never played with dolls, only stuffed dogs. I can barely remember having a dog when I was small who became ill and was put down. I remember crying but not much else. I guess after that, since we were such an active family, no amount of pleading and begging could convince my parents to get me a dog! The whole yakity yak about training and cleaning up poop etc...On Dec 2 1991 at 7a I was having coffee at the train station cafe when the owner answered the phone..it was her niece telling her that their GR, Asia, was in the midst of having puppies! My friend kept saying "another? another"? I interrupted her to have her reserve a male for me. That's it, Went home, broke the news that after the holidays I would be an official dog owner, and of course being almost 41 yrs old there wasn't much they could say or do! Never had a dog, knew nothing, was definitely NOT alpha, learned the very very hard way, spent lots of money on training ME and 9 yrs and 5 mo later my life is complete in a way I never I imagined! I never thought my love for this dog would be so deep and mutual. There are no words to describe it, as you all know. When I first picked him up we stared at each other and that was it! Worth every second of every day and I finally got the wish I wanted most!!!! I say a prayer for him every night! I feel very blessed!

[I Love My Aussie]

This is the dog I was talking about in my previous post in this category (scroll up to see it). He's part lab and part pit bull (thats what he loks like anyhow) and he's the sweetest dog you could ever meet!
He doesn't have a name but I call him 'Chance' or just plain ole' 'My Puppy" (as referred by my friends. I have a friend I walk home with every day and I try to get her to pet him bt sh enever will, if she wants to bargain with me for something she'll be like "...but I'll pet you puppy."


------------------
*Whoever said you couldn't buy love forgot about dogs.*

[Iditarodfan]

It's wonderful getting to know all the cool/hot dog lovers on DOTD! This story is for Rachel & I Love my Aussie, whoever that may be.
When our kids were small we lived across the street from some dog owners who abused their beautiful German Shepher mix.
That's why I call them Owners instead of
Guardians!
Anyhow, they called the dog SheBad. She spent the summer chewing through her rope or breaking her chain & crossing the street to visit us. Twice she arrive with crude bandages over new sores.
This went on through Autumn. Then on Christmas eve my hubby, Pat, crossed the street and offered SheBad's owners $15 for her. They jumped at the $, glad to get rid of her. Our kids were thrilled, better than Santa Claus! I said let's call her Eve for xmas eve. Our youngest daughter said, "no". Suzi said, "Let's call her Shamu, because she is beautiful like Shamu the whale at Sea World." Everyone agreed, because that was a : name for a : dog!
Shamu lived to be 9 years old. When she got hip displasia in both hind hips & could not walk we had to put her to sleep. That was a very sad day! Shamu taught us that, "Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."
Hope to see you again someday, Shamu, at Rainbow Bridge. Thanks for teaching us about Love!

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Sorry my post is so late!!!!!! I got Sadie May, my Labby from a Labrador Retriever breeder, kinda lives by my house!! At the time is was only 6 years old. We got Sadie on father's Day on 1996. I wanted another dog sooooo bad, so I FINIALLY got my wish! We had another dog at that time, a Yellow Labby, named Teal, (named after the duck), waiting for us to come home with a new friend! Teal wasn't that intrested in Sadie, but she got used to Sadie!!! Now, Sadie is spolied rotten!! She's got 6 leashes, 1 chain leash, 2 nylon leashes, one red and one black, the black one was Teal"s, but now it's Sadie"s, 2 flexi leashes, one red, one brown, (I bought the red one for her last Christmas), we found the brown flexi leash, 2 rope toys, 2 tug-of-war toys, a big box of Milk-Bones, and all kinds of other stuff!!!!!!

[Iditarodfan]

Let's see I wrote about Shamu. So here's Lucky's story. My husband & I were new parents with a new baby & a new puppy! My Mom came to help me. She put our dog Jenny in the dog run. When she went back out to bring her in, low & behold she was GONE. When she didn't return & my parents couldn't find her they put an ad in the paper. For one week they followed up all replies to their add for a lost puppy. Finally, after going to a lady's home who had found a puppy which matched "Jenny's" discription they gave up. But they came home with "Lucky"
In the meanwhile I was tending to a newborn baby girl when the lady across the street came over & said, "I KNOW WHERE YOUR DOG Is."
"I've been sick, but I saw the Gypsies next door take her out of the pen." (Now not all Gypsies believe the whole block is community property, but some do.) Subsequently, I marched next door & asked for my puppy back.
They promptly gave "Jenny" to me. When I returned home mom & dad were there with "Lucky". So now my husband & I had one baby & two puppies. Whimpers & cries.
My Dad said, "Since I paid for the dog, I get one. Which one do you want I'll take the other one." So we chose "Lucky" she was indeed lucky. And my parents went home with "Jenny" who had lived with the Gypsies for a week. Both dogs brought us great joy! Happy Trails to all on DOTD
Iditarodfan-Bea

[RachelJ]

I'm enjoying everybody's stories so much as I am sure everyone else is as well. Thank you to everyone who has contributed and please keep them coming.

Bea, your Pat gets my Hubby of the Day award for his determined rescue of Shamu. What a guy!

[Iditarodfan]

Rachel, My hubby, Pat, appreciates your award! He's blushing. I'm going to follow this post up with my "YoYo" story.
I agree, "the best dog is the dog you have now". But some dogs are like your soul mate here on earth & that was YoYo for me. Her story follows. woof-woof, Hannah & Tucker
Iditarodfan-Bea

[Iditarodfan]

Rachel, My hubby, Pat, appreciates your award! He's blushing. I'm going to follow this post up with my "YoYo" story.
I agree, "the best dog is the dog you have now". But some dogs are like your soul mate here on earth & that was YoYo for me. Her story follows. woof-woof, Hannah & Tucker
Iditarodfan-Bea

[Iditarodfan]

TITLE: YOYO MY SOUL MATE OR YES, A DOG CAN BE YOUR SOUL MATE! When our 3 children were small we had "Lucky" a daschund. One day our 7 yr. old son came home followed by the funniest looking dog you have ever seen. She was maybe 12 lbs, grey, wiry, thin hair; a cross between a Whippet & Mexican hairless!
We didn't want a 2nd dog, but YoYo persisted in claiming our hearts. We tried to shoo her away. But when our backs were turned she would repeatedly jump, 10 times over to peek in the backdoor storm window. Our son said, "Look Mom, she's a YoYo!" I think she was lost by a traveling circus, because she would run around the yard at 35 mph & land proudly,posed on a tree stump. Our little daughter would dress her in doll clothes, put her in the doll buggy, & stroll through the neighborhood. But YoYo was mostly MY DOG. She never talked back to me & knew when I needed "pet therapy". We had YoYo for 16 yrs. Maybe we should have taken better care of her, but $ was tight when the kids were small. Dentist, doctors, camping trips, music & sports came before vet. bills. We always licensed YoYo and saw she had her yearly shots, especially rabies. That was so she could cross the Canadian border with us! She loved new places, smells & pals.
Once she left our campfire only to return with a big, tasty german sausage. Finally the day arrived that we had to have her put to sleep. She had lumps under her skin, & could barely stand without falling over. That was a hard, sad day! Now a week never passes that I don't desire to "see" YoYo again. Just thinking about her brings laughter and tears. I Love You, YoYo!
Iditarodfan-Bea

[Genia]

A little late, been busy, but here's my story. I grew up with dogs. When I moved out on my own I always wanted a dog, but never had the space. I did have the most wonderful cats - Suzy and Mike (Rainbow Bridge). I finally got a dog, Dusty, a Basset/lab mix from a shelter. Dusty was with us for 3 beautiful years until a tragic mishap, which I have posted before, but would rather not go into. I was living in Georgia at the time. I got transferred to Belgium, went pet-less for a couple of years and finally landed stateside again. I moved into a somewhat big house with a nice backyard and started yearning for a dog. Out of habit, I always look at the pet section of the ads in the newspaper. There it was; "free to a loving home, half Basset, half Lab. So many memories of my beloved Dusty came rushing back. I had to call. I arranged for the "owners" to come over and Jeffrey was a big hit! He is just like Dusty except he is solid black, where Dusty was golden. He came in my house running and ran straight upstairs. When he was called to come downstairs he fell down the last three or so steps and rolled into the wall. Clumsey just like Dusty! I was hooked. Bandit, my Pug, was living with my daughter's best friend. I work in the same building as the little's girl's mother, so through our children, we got to know each other. She received orders to Japan and found out she wouldn't be able to get a large house so decided to give up Bandit. She saw how much we loved Jeffrey and asked if we would take Bandit. I am a single parent and having the un-trained Jeffrey was like having a 2 yr old baby so I was a little hesitant. My friend brought Bandit to my daughter's 11th birthday party and we hit it off instantly! He and Jeffrey played together so well, even with 10 10-11 year old girls screaming and running throughout the house. Bandit ended up spending the night and we have never looked back. I've said this many times before but Jeffrey is my rough and tumble dog, who is progessing nicely in his training, and Bandit is my snuggle buddy who sleeps under my covers at night. So different (Pinky and the Brain, as my daughter says), but the perfect combination.