This post is written by my mom.
Sandy was my heart dog. I had her 12 years before we lost her to cancer. She was the dog that would sit on my lap while I watched TV. She followed me everywhere. She slept with my husband on the floor. She was the dog that loved her people.
When we lost Sandy, I would look at photos for hours on petfinder.com every night. I adopted Sandy from a Humane Society and I wanted to save another dog. My husband said I was obsessed. I was grieving.
I thought another border collie mix would be a good playmate for Radcliff. I contacted a border collie rescue. They wouldn’t adopt a female dog to us because we had Peg, a female shepherd. Peg was 14 years old and very independent.
I had been looking for almost three months when I came across a photo of a German Shepherd mix pup that touched my heart. I submitted an application. We were third on a waiting list.
Almost a month passed. We received an email that the other two applications didn’t work out. Were we still interested? A lady found Ina and her sister. Two puppies were too much work so she asked for help. Ina’s sister was adopted quickly. A foster family kept her outside in the back yard. She was very shy and timid around men. As I write this, I realized that was the exact description on the Humane Society form about Sandy.
Ina was almost three months old with big brown eyes. As I showed my husband her photo, I told him that she might be afraid of him or very shy. He’s a pushover for puppies. Or maybe he was tired of me looking at dogs on the internet every night.
We took Radcliff with us to meet her. He knew something was going on because the kennel was in the back of the SUV. After driving almost two hours, I said “I didn’t realize it was this far away. We don’t have to adopt her. We can go home.” My husband said “We’ve come this far, let’s just meet her.” We drove almost three hours, (one way) to meet her.
We met at the local vet’s office because the small town did not have an animal shelter. When we pulled up, Ina and Allison were sitting on the grass outside the office. We left Radcliff in the car. When we approached them, to our surprise, Ina ran to my husband. When we got Radcliff out of the car, it was obvious that she adored him. But that’s normal, Radcliff has that effect on everyone.
We spent some time with her. I was tired from the drive and emotionally drained. I could not make a decision. I asked my husband what he thought. He said “we didn’t drive all this way to turn around and leave her.” I’m pretty sure he didn’t want to drive back to get her the next weekend after I made up my mind.
So I completed her adoption paperwork on a late Sunday afternoon in a small Kansas vet clinic. We loaded her up in the kennel in the back of the SUV. She slept the entire three hours on our journey home.
When we got home, it was as if she knew we were her forever family. We cannot imagine our lives without her. My husband commented about how much she was like Sandy. It’s as if Sandy is still with us.
Christina Berry
April 13, 2013 at 11:28 pm
My goodness, she’s gorgeous! 🙂 Thanks for sharing Ina’s “gotcha story”!
radcliffdeafdog
September 28, 2013 at 11:08 am
Christina, Ina is a spoiled diva princess and we love her. Thanks for visiting my blog!
Marcia
September 28, 2013 at 1:49 pm
Ina looks like a gem! It’s hard to say goodbye to a beloved, furry family member. Sharing your life again is such a generous, healing act. Love & health to your family : )
radcliffdeafdog
October 5, 2013 at 9:17 am
Mom knows that Sandy would want another homeless furkid to have the love and family that she had. Thanks for the woof!
Sally A. Cedotal
September 29, 2013 at 12:08 am
Ina is gorgeous. So sorry about sweet Sandy. I lost my 15 year old Tazzie cat this week to cancer, and I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it. I’ve got a 4 year old dachshund/Jack Russell mix I got when I lost my 14 year old Augie, and she is a pistol. Enjoy your babies. They give us a reason, to smile, don’t they?
radcliffdeafdog
October 5, 2013 at 9:27 am
Sorry to read about Tazzie cat, cherish the memories. Yes, furkids give us many reasons to smile. Thanks for the woof!