Read Part I here.
When we left off, I had rushed into a dog adoption that didn’t work out, got stood up by a creepy online dog breeder, and was of the mind set that what was meant to be would be. As luck would have it, waiting for the right dog came sooner rather than later.
A couple of weeks went by during which I checked online daily, but nothing. Then one morning, I was on Kijiji.com and saw a picture of the cutest puppy ever (obviously, I am biased). The Kijiji post was a re-post that originated from a website called Petfinder.com (a major pet adoption website that seems worth checking out). His online profile was quite extensive. I read about his background, his personality, and his parents. His mom, Ivy, became pregnant when her owners abandoned her at the pound. She was young and knocked up with nowhere to go. Kinda sounds like an episode of MTV’s Teen Mom.
Enter the rescue group called Marley’s Pit Stop led by a wonderfully generous lady named Elizabeth. Their group currently fosters about fifty or so orphaned dogs and they work tirelessly to match them with loving owners every weekend. That’s right, they’re all volunteers with 9 to 5 jobs who do this for the love of animals. Amazing, indeed.
Ivy’s litter of seven puppies was born December 8, 2009. Ivy, Henry and his six siblings lived with a very generous foster family for their first seven weeks of life. Ivy nursed her little ones and eventually they were weaned and ready to be adopted.
Enter his overly eager adoptive mama (a.k.a. ME). Elizabeth let us know that we would need to fill out an application form for Henry, schedule a home visit, and if we were approved, we would get the dog. The application form was quite thorough. I have had job applications less extensive. I have had cavity searches at the airport less extensive. But, I was happy to complete it. These groups just want to make sure that their rescue dogs go to the best homes possible. It’s akin to a hazing process. If you don’t make it through the application process, maybe you didn’t want the dog badly enough?
So we jumped through hoops and we rolled over when she told us to roll over. And, we were APPROVED! We met Elizabeth at a local pet store where Henry was chillin’ in a big crate surrounded by all of his brothers and sisters. We scooped up the little one, went over paperwork, confirmed everything, and we were off!
The process of adopting from a rescue group was the best decision we could have made. We have received so much support from Marley’s Pit Stop Rescue, and they really care about what happens to their animals after they are adopted. It felt good to know that some of Henry’s adoption fees would go toward the furthering of this group’s causes.
And that completes the story of how Henry came to be the newest member of our family.
Best of luck to anyone looking to get a new pet. Don’t forget to research and consider animal rescue and adoption!