My first adopted pet was an awesome dog named Buddy. My daughters Emily and Josie wanted a dog and we were finally ready. We had just moved into our first home in Richmond Virginia and we were looking to adopt a family friend. I thought about buying a dog. I looked in the paper to see what was available. All I saw were expensive puppies and I did not want expensive or puppy. I was looking for an adult dog and I saw a whole bunch of them advertised by the Henrico County Humane Society.
I logged into their website through http://www.petfinder.com./ I have always liked large breed dogs, I was looking for an adult dog, and I liked the idea that this dog could possibly offer some protection to a house of three women. I found Dallas. He was a beautiful German Shepherd. His fault was being able to jump fences but I had a large yard with a privacy fence, this was not an issue for me. We filled out the initial papers online to express our interest in Dallas. We were told about the weekend open house and that Dallas would be at the local PetSmart that coming Saturday. We went, we walked Dallas and hung out with him. We liked him a lot but there just wasn't that "click" that you hope to have. I think he was just a little more dog than we were prepared to handle. We put him back in his crate and looked around.
Emily spotted Buddy. This shy, timid black lab/shepherd mix. He was a big boy for sure. We took him out and he was so scared! He pulled at our heart strings....and we took him home. The society people had to come look at our place to make sure we met his needs. She asked about letting him in our home. I said we would love to but he won't come in the house, he was too scared. She asked if we would work on it and not give up on him, I said naturally. It did take Buddy a while. This poor baby was so scared of any kindness. If we fed him and walked anywhere near his bowl, he would back away and go lay down. If I yelled at the girls he would cower and hide. He did finally come into the house but it took a long time for him to come out of his shell.
Buddy was always a gentleman. He was always polite. He loved a good squirrel chase and was a fantastic magician. He was so smart, he learned how to open our gate and then he learned how to open the gates of all his dog friends. Much to my embarassment, this magician of ours was caught opening the gates of several other dogs and taking them all on a good romp through the neighborhood.
He was also smart enough to know better than to chew his family members shoes. But woe to those neighborhood kids who left their shoes in our backyard after jumping on the trampoline! He was highly intelligent. He even made friends with the goat Emily showed in the FFA right after we moved to Georgia. That poor goat had a crisis of identity after Buddy made her a memeber of the pack. They would romp all down by the creek together!
We had Buddy for nearly 10 years before he passed. He was by far the best dog we have ever had the pleasure of knowing. We love watching family videos of him wresting with the girls or cleaning the cat's ears. We have since adopted a total of 2 more dogs and picked up another 6 cats. I would never, ever buy a so called "pure breed" animal over my alley cats and mutts. They are the best because they know what hardship is all about and appreciate becoming a true member of the family. We still love our Buddy. As I write this story I have conflicting emotions. I am so glad he gave us the "look" that made us adopt him. I am so glad he chewed on my favorite pair of shoes. I am so glad he was a loved member of our neighborhood kids pack. I am so very sorry he passed way too soon.
Rest in Peace Buddy. Your work on earth is done.
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