A fun little post to hopefully put a smile on your face and give you a glimpse into our lives.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a dog person. And I mean REALLY been a dog person. I LOVE pups. There’s something about them that can just instantly turn your day around. Their unconditional love is like no other. It’s funny that I came to love them so much, because I never actually had a pet dog growing up. We had always begged for one but ultimately we never won that battle.
So, finally, at the age of 26 I got my first pup. My boyfriend Ryan and I were on our way home from a camping trip in New York. We had previously had several discussions about adopting a dog someday but had both agreed to wait until it was right. And apparently, on a whim, on this car ride home, Ryan thought it was the right time. I don’t really think that either of us thought it was truly the right time, but we showed up to the shelter anyways.
We met a few dogs, and were immediately drawn to a lab mix, but he barked quite a bit and we knew he wasn’t the dog for us. There was a quieter lab that the shelter thought we would like and brought outside with us. We fell in LOVE. She ran around and played ball with us, gave us kisses, and even played in the kiddie pool in the back. Her name was Kita and I wanted to call her mine. Of course, we were both so nervous. We have nothing for her, no bed or food, no toys or treats, or even a leash! Were we really ready for this?
But Ryan had this confidence about him. He knew she was the dog for us. So, we signed the paperwork, shook hands, got her in our back seat and headed for the pet store. She was cute as can be for the first few hours. We spoiled her with toys and treats, and she was loving all of the attention. It wasn’t until we went to bed that things flipped upside down.
When we went to bed and turned out the lights, Kita erupted into violent barking. She was trying to bite us, and could not be calmed down. We tried to console her, gave her toys and brought her to the living room where we’d hope she’d be less scared. Overall, we probably got a total of 2 hours of sleep. It was clear she had a lot of adjusting to do. She was VERY anxious and scared.
We were lucky enough to have the contact number of the trainer who ran the shelter. She helped us through those tough days. We also leaned on our fiends who had been through the rescue process and could shed light on the situation. We just wanted to make sure we were the right parents for Kita and could give her everything she needed.
Fast forward 4 months - Kita is the most amazing pup we could have dreamed of. She loves living with us. She enjoys running and playing, of course with her ball, and cuddling at the end of the day. Best of all? She loves to camp and hike with us, so she is the adventure pup we always wanted! Although she still has her anxious times, she’s like a different dog, and we are so happy we were able to give her the home she deserves.
Until next time, live creatively friends.
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