Adopt a Mature Pound Dog! You're Not So Young Yourself!

If you view the comments from my last blog, you can see that I've been asked for a dog blog, specifically a blog about our dog Sara. A week or so ago we adopted “Sweet Sara” from the Douglas County pound. Sara is fully grown, so she was having a difficult time being adopted. Actually she and her best friend Pete had been there since April. Pete's still there. Actually, if I hadn't gone there on a mission for Sara, we may have adopted Pete. He's a beautiful Pointer.

I don't understand why fully grown dogs have such difficulty with adoption. They are not destructive, as opposed to puppies. I really believe that you can teach an old dog new tricks, if they involve the social skills the dog needs to have to live with you. I've almost always lived with dogs, and I'm happy if they already have personality. Most of all though, I'm not as young as I feel, and I would rather outlive my dogs than the other way around. I'd hate to leave an older dog grief-stricken and at the mercy of people strange to him or her. So we adopted Sara.

We already have two dogs that we adopted as strays. Ginger is pushing ten. As a puppy she was put out at a rest area on a major highway. She's part boxer and chow. We think. Her tail curls up her back, and her tongue has purple highlights. She's has furrowed brow which gives her a permanent concerned expression. Which is good, because she is permanently concerned. She is concerned about being treated fairly. Obviously the world didn't treat her fairly early on, so she's drawn the line there. If she's not the first to go for a walk she becomes “spinning Ginny.” She spins around in a small circle barking angrily at her tail, until it's well past the time you got the point. Don't even think of cheating her out of a treat. She is the worker of the family, constantly on guard for dangers, so she feels she's earned some consideration. She's also a natural mother. She had a collection of stuffed toys she watched over and groomed daily. When we adopted Grady she had a real puppy to worry over.

Grady is a terrier mix, with some Catahoula hound or leopard dog, a breed known for high energy. Just after we adopted him as a stray puppy, I enrolled him in the first Share House “Paws and Effects” dog show, and he won for “Most Obscure Heritage.” Ever since he received the blue ribbon, he decided he was destined for stardom. So did Ginny. She adopted him immediately and forgot the stuffed toys, which we had to keep away from Grady anyway. Ginny loves to play tug-a-rope with him and used to always let him win. Now that he's three, the games have gotten tougher.

So how does Sara fit in? Pretty well. Ginny still thinks we made a big mistake, but she's slowly warming up. Grady is willing to play with anyone who applies, and anyone who doesn't apply. Sara is giving the rest of us a break. She's about the same age as Grady and she's crazy about him. What's not to like? Sara is very vocal. She's constantly making low sounds that aren't growls, but they sound like she's grumbling to herself. She reminds me of Kreacher the house elf in Harry Potter, but nicer. We call it authentic Sara gibberish. She's an escape artist, because she loves to hunt and explore. We've caught on to her tricks, but we can see in her eyes that she's working on new ones. She's a great addition to the family. Thank you Patch for suggesting her. Now, for Pete's sake, someone adopt Pete!