My 9-year-old son, Evan, had had enough. He missed having a dog and took every opportunity to remind me. Eventually, he figured out that for something to happen, it first needs to be on my To-Do list.
He didn’t realize that his father and I had already started looking for a new dog to join our family. After our experience with Madame Cujo, the most important quality was that the dog be friendly.
After searching through hundreds of dogs online, I finally found the perfect dog:
“2-years-old...spayed female...intelligent...friendly...trustworthy...loves other dogs...non-aggressive...housebroken...obedience trained....gentle...loves children...well-mannered.”
Bailey was well-loved by her previous owner who did not want to give her up. A tendency to run away when the owner’s two-year-old son would randomly open the door along with the owner’s husband’s dislike of dog hair necessitated Bailey’s re-homing.
After competing with several other potential adopters, we were finally selected as Bailey’s new family.
We had to travel from one end of Pennsylvania to the other to get her. My husband and older son could not make the trip, so my two younger sons and I embarked on Operation Bring Home Bailey.
We met Bailey on Saturday so that she’d have a chance to meet us before being put in a strange car and taken to a strange home. We stayed overnight at a hotel and then picked her up the next day to bring her home with us.
As soon as her dog bed was placed in my car, Bailey was ready to go.
She laid down on her dog bed the entire 5-1/2 hour trip with only one stop at a rest area.
We’ve now had Bailey for three weeks and she’s adjusted very well. Her days are filled with walks, meeting people, car rides, playing with kids and toys, bringing in the newspaper, and sleeping in her new favorite place: the rug by our front door next to my office.
I took her to the vet for a check-up last week. The vet loved how well-mannered and friendly she was and told me that only one in one hundred dogs are as nice as Bailey. I’m not sure I agree. I think it’s more like one in a million.
If it were up to me, I’d have re-homed the husband instead.
Comments
yekdeli - Thank you! Bailey is exceeding my expectations in every way. Congrats on finding your own sweet dog, too. :)
She is so lucky to have you and your family. I can feel the love from here. Please share more pics and tails (sic) of her new life with you and yours.
This is welcome good news.
cartouche - Thank you! I feel very, very lucky to have found her.
Ablonde - Now I'm going to have to hunt for a video from Seventh Heaven on YouTube! Thanks for sharing my good news. :)
Emma - XOXO
(I thought she was cute before and she's still adorable! Especially that first picture. "I'm ready to go!")
Hello - Jackpot indeed!
bluesurly - Thank you. It does feel to me as if everything lined up perfectly for her to be with us.
Gary - I think she might give your dog some competition for Greatest Dog in the World. :)
David - Nah, no time for posting on OS, what with playing catch, sniffing out critters, and taking all those walks.
Deborah - Thankfully, MY husband recognized a good dog when he saw one! I appreciate you sharing my good news.
Cymraeg - Baileys says thanks for the ear-scritches.
Lea - I am so sad about Josie, too. :(
Pamela - Thank you. We're happy to have found her.
Jen - I guess the husband didn't learn the way that I did that if you find a good dog, you treasure her.
With this you left me nothing to say in my comment. Except I understand why was so ready to go.
This is the dog you deserve. Congratulations!
Kisses.
Hope you have a great holiday weekend playing with your new family member.
Jess - Thanks! We're having a great time with her. She met more people tonight while out walking and she was so sweet to them. We're really enjoying her.
Marcela - I like how you phrased that: I guess we are each other's "second chance."
WalkAwayHappy - I love her face, too. She makes me smile. I like the idea that we've rescued each other. Thank you!
Ablonde - We've got a big weekend planned for her; we're taking her camping! Lots of people, lots of other dogs, lots of hiking. I think she'll love it.
mamoore - Thanks! I think she's extra-special too, but thought I was being biased. :)
Thank you, thank you everyone for stopping by to share our joy. Nothing can beat the companionship of a good dog. I'm so grateful that Bailey's owner chose us to adopt her. She's a perfect fit with our family. Even the energy in our home these days seems lighter and more positive, as if she were the missing piece. Hmm...maybe she was? :)
Notes - Thanks! I love your term "joy of a dog." It's perfect!
Umbrella - I love thinking that she was running away to get to me. I have all kinds of stories about how the Universe totally lined up for me when it came to adopting Bailey. I think it was meant to be. :)
By the way, I'm thrilled to see you here. I know that your time is limited these days.
I think Bailey is a very lucky dog indeed, to have found such a caring family to be adopted into. Good luck with her.
Steve - Yeah, my parents used to do the same thing as your parents. Given my recent bad luck with dogs, I thought I should put some major effort into this one.