Ten years ago, my husband and I adopted a gigantic half-grown puppy from your shelter. He was half Border Collie and half Dane. His name was Pacer. We got a lot of grief for bringing him into our home because we had just brought home our first baby boy a few months earlier. It didn't take long for everyone to change their minds...
Very soon he was a part of the family. He would jump into the truck with the tailgate closed and we would drive to my husband's parent's house with our little boy laughing the entire five mile drive because his puppy was watching him through the back glass! He would jump over the sofa in the living room to get to the kitchen of our split-level home and chase a laser-pointer like a cat! He was a funny puppy and we loved him.
We moved to my family farm and he pretty much claimed it as his own. He chased all manner of varmints out of 'his yard' and followed us everywhere. He loved bonfires and hot dogs. In fact, it took one entire pack of hot dogs to give him a bath. He would sit perfectly still as long as he was getting his snack! He made us laugh.
Every new baby we brought home got his thorough inspection and it seemed like he thought that he was one of our 'pups' and that each new addition was another 'litter mate' for him. He went everywhere they went and kept them safe. Once, my second born got lost in the woods and I was searching frantically for him. When I got to the pond I started to cry. I was terrified. Pace came up and licked me and begged me to follow him. He showed me where he had found my son playing in the front yard, oblivious that we were searching for him!
He had the greatest life a dog could have. He was never tied or penned up. He slept on the floor all day. He was a pillow for the four sons we ended up having. We loved him. He was made for us. He wasn't allowed on the furniture but he would sneak up there anyway. If we came in the room and caught him, he would slide his front feet off the couch and look over his shoulder like, "Wow, how did my rear end get up there?!"
We just lost him about a week ago. He can never be replaced. He was the best dog I have ever had in my life. He didn't even seem like a dog, he was just part of the family. None of my children can remember life without him. This last summer our local paper printed him in their 'pet of the week' column. Everyone called to say they had seen that Pace was 'famous'! He should be famous...he may have been the best dog in the world. I swear that he knew he had been rescued and that he lived his life to pay us back for that.
In closing, this is a letter to say thank you to all of the people who do what they do so that dogs like Pace can be loved. They deserve to be loved. It is because of you that I have memories of my youngest sitting on Pace, who is taking up an entire easy chair, and sharing his snack...one for you, and one for me....with his puppy. It's because of you that my cousin could make the comment to his new wife, "This is Pace. He's the dog I wish I could clone!" You have given us the gift of ten years worth of happy memories with our dog. Thank you.
No comments:
Post a Comment