It is a cool morning, rare for June, and I get to walk my dog. Or she walks me. Take your pick.
I'm so thankful for Gracie, our new pit bull puppy who came to us through an unusual series of events.
Late last fall, new tenants moved into the lower apartment next door. Their backyard was right next to ours, and we noticed that they had a brindle pit mix puppy. She had a different name then. As the weather improved, and windows remained open, we would hear lots of loud voices from this apartment -- yells directed at other people in the house and many yells directed at the puppy. She was often left outside in her kennel, with no toys or comforts -- hardly did we even see food or water. She never did anything right in the eyes of her humans, always being told to "go in her cage" and lie down. When we greeted her across the fence, she tucked her tail between her legs and regarded us with sad eyes. What could we do?
It is hard to contact authorities in these cases because the treatment of animals is, unfortunately, very subjective. Unless you have obvious or clear evidence of animal abuse, usually physical, it is hard to prove. We debated what to do. One afternoon, Jesse heard one of the tenants yell at the puppy hours after she had chewed up a necklace left on the floor. She cowered, shrinking from the onslaught of slapping and screaming. Jesse, brilliant and sensitive, approached the tenants, observed that the dog seemed to be causing them a lot of stress, and offered to take her. They seemed to consider it, but didn't commit either way.
During this time, I had a dream about the puppy. She was in our house, and I was so delighted, but I was confused as to why she wasn't next door. In the dream, I had a strong sense that she was seeking comfort and protection.
A month or two later, the tenants were moving out. We were thankful that we would no longer be subjected to the constant screaming, but we worried about puppy. What would happen to her? Would we get up one day to find her dumped in the yard? Would they grow so tired of her and take her to a shelter, where (as a pit) she would likely be euthanized in an instant?
All our experiences with the puppy suggested she was a smart, caring dog. But she was a puppy! Of course she was going to chew up things and be energetic when you were tired and need walks and love and exercise! She was a bundle of energy in need of someone to care. We missed seeing her sad brindle face.
The Saturday after they moved, June 3, Jesse and I had a rare free day ahead of us. We were both taking off work -- he from dissertation writing, me from Urban Roost -- so we started our day at the Farmer's Market. He had taken off ahead of me to check out an estate sale, so I walked to Tower Grove Park to meet him. As usual in our neighborhood, so many people were out with their dogs. I watched a couple in the park get tugged this way and that by their furbabies before they routed them back on track. One of their dogs looked so much like our neighbor puppy, and I made eye contact with the dog briefly. It was lovely to watch the dogs walk their humans. Like a young child, I wished we had a dog of our own. Some people might put off having kids, but we were putting off having a dog! Oh, well, I thought. Maybe someday, when we have a bigger house, yard, fewer cats, etc etc. The same old mantra of 'not now.' These thoughts circled in my mind as I approached the Market.
I spotted Jesse soon, and just as I walked up to him, his phone rang. It was one of our ex-neighbors. Before I could make full sense of it, she was asking if we wanted puppy. Yes! Yes! Yes! What timing! Forgetting our free day, we rushed to the truck and hightailed it back home to meet our girl.
We renamed her Gracie, a new start for her after a hard beginning. She is about 8 months old with boundless energy and a generous heart. She has much to learn, as do we, but we are thankful we intervened when we did. We were able to help. If only we could save them all......but for now, 1 puppy and 3 cats is about all we can do. :)
As for the cats, they are troopers. Gracie brings her toys to them, and they sneer and swat at her. She wants to play, they want to lounge. She is learning, they are learning, we are learning.....
We are grateful for our family!
