Still miss him…

It’s been close to a year and a half, but I still miss my Bo.  He was a dog that I had no intention of getting. 

A friend of mine asked me to take her to an animal shelter to look at a Dalmatian that had just been posted on their web site.  She had just lost her Dalmatian and desperately wanted to get another one.  Her husband had to work late and she was scared this dog was going to be adopted before she could get up there. So yes, I told her I’d take her.  While there, I wandered around some.  It was sad to see all those dogs just wanting to go home with someone.  Now, if I’d gone there to get a dog myself, there was no way I could have left without taking one home.  But I was not looking to adopt, I was merely a chauffeur for someone who was.  No guilt in leaving empty handed, right? 

I finished my mission, this Dalmatian had a new home and the car was full of excitement.  My friend was grateful for having been able to fill her home with doggy love again.  When I got home, I spoke to my (very soon to be) husband about this one dog that I saw.  My heart breaking just a little bit more with every word.  See, this one dog, he just sat in the back with his ears at full alert but stayed a safe distance. All the other dogs were jumping and barking at their gates hoping to win someone’s affection.

The next day I called the shelter and asked if by any chance he was still there.  He was.  I was so excited.  I asked her to please make sure that no one else adopted him.  I wanted to give him a home!  She assured me, he would still be there.  Just that, broke my heart even more.  I was determined to give him the best home I could. 

My boys were 9 and 10 at the time.  I did not tell them where we were going at first, just that we had some place special to go.  We stopped for a quick dinner and I told them then what was about to happen.  I also explained that we were not going to go look at dogs, we had one already picked out.  (I was scared that we’d get there and suddenly they would be like, ‘but we like this one’.)

And that is how it all began.  There is nothing better than a dog’s love and trust.  And he gave us all that, and so much more.