Year of the Dog



Lottie and Sindee


Today is our anniversary.  One year ago today I met Lottie Moon.  We met in the parking lot of a Whole Foods in South Carolina.  I had hitched a ride with Gina, who was visiting her sister in North Carolina, and together we drove to meet Lottie and her rescuer, Sindie of Oconee Rescue.  Sindie is a woman I can really relate to.  She has 20 dogs, and 8 children, and 6 of those children were adopted.  That would have been me, if I had married better.  But now I’m divorced and childless, no adopted children, just adopted dogs.  I had found Lottie on Petfinder.com, and sent an inquiry email to Sindie.  She called me immediately, and we talked often over the next couple of weeks while I tried to arrange transport for Lottie to get her from South Carolina to Ohio.  After a lot of frustration, I finally got a ride with Gina, and was able to get my little blind/deaf puppy. 






I was a bit nervous about meeting her, because here I was, 500 miles from home, 

First kiss :-)

adopting a dog I had never met.  What if I didn’t like her?  What if her personality wasn’t what I was looking for?  I wanted a dog that was happy and bold and sweet and fearless.  No worries.  She was perfect, and I knew it almost instantly.

 

Here is her Petfinder page and photos, this is what I first saw and was drawn to:

Petfinder photo 1



About Me

Abby is a Lethal White Australian Shepherd. She is the victim of Double Merle Breeding which leaves some of the litter partially blind and deaf. She is a sweet and affectionate 8 month old. She loves to play and chase leaves in the yard. Abby needs to be adopted by someone who has an interstest in working with her special needs. She is dog and people friendly. Her foster mom has crate trained her and is working on housetraining.

 

Petfinder photo 2




















Visit My Petfinder Page
http://www.petfinder.com/petdetail/21974895?mtf=1

Our first night together was spent at Gina’s sister’s house.  Noelle was with us, of course, and out first night was actually quite cozy, just me and Noelle and Lottie in the guest bedroom, getting to know each other. 


First night



Making herself at home, first night together























First night


Gina's sister has 2 boxers, who lived outside in a pen, and had dog aggression issues.  I took Lottie outside to walk her a LOT that first night, because I didn’t know her and her schedule, and I was a guest who would be horrified if my puppy messed on the carpet.  So we spent a lot of time walking around in the dark, with 2 boxers staring at Lottie, and I swear they were plotting how to scale their pen and eat her.  I went over in my mind my plan to protect her if that happened, which mostly consisted of me laying on Lottie and saving her with my body while the boxers ripped me up in an attempt to get to her . . .  funny how the mind works when I’m all alone in the North Carolina countryside with a blind/deaf puppy on a leash and Cujo X2 salivating behind a flimsy chain link fence in the moonlight. . . .



Our first walk, at Gina's sister's house



Here is the email I sent to Sindie dated 2/3/2012, our first day back home in Ohio:

Sindie,

I love love love this dog!  She is perfect!  We stopped at Petsmart last night on the way home for a playdate with my friend's lethal white aussie, then came home to meet the rest of my dogs.  She is a trooper, greeted everyone at my house with no problem, handles the stairs beautifully, follows me around and pays attention.  One accident in the house, but I was right with her and took her outside, where she finished and got good lovin' for being such a good dog.  She is so good in her crate, both in the car and at night.  She is with me today at work, we are going to the park with my 2 border collies at lunch.

Thank you so much!

Allison

It’s been an awesome year.  I adore Lottie, and she had lived up to everything I had hoped she would be.  She has had a year full of adventure all around Ohio and Michigan, and managed to get her DSA, and several badges, including, amazingly, agility.  Our goal for next year is to pass the Canine Good Citizen test, and then get her certified as a therapy dog, since TDI is now allowing deaf dogs to qualify.  Both of those tests are less difficult than the Dog Scout certification, so I’m not expecting any problems. 

Thank you, Lottie Moon, for coming into and enriching my life this past year.  Now, on to Year Two!

Relaxing in her crate, Ohio bound!