"Give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way."
Native American saying
Native American saying
How did this beautiful girl come to me? Well, everybody loves a good story, and Treasure is no exception. I have been involved in sheltie rescue for many years, both through fostering and adopting. In the beginning of May, I found myself drawn to look at shelties on pet finder. I wasn’t necessarily looking for a new dog, or at least that’s what I told myself. But I found myself there looking, none the less. Something, or someone, had led me to search there.
When I found her, her name was Snowy. She was listed as being in a shelter in Missouri. The instant my eyes saw her picture, my heart belonged to her. I wondered how I would go about getting her from Missouri to PA, but I inquired about her anyway. The shelter answered me that I was too late. That someone else (from PA, of all places) was already in the process of doing paperwork to adopt her. My heart sank. I tried to be happy for her, that she had found a wonderful home and would no longer sit in a shelter all alone. But I had felt an instant connection with her without even having met her. Her picture was printed out next to my computer. I stared at it. I couldn’t make myself throw it away. I had a feeling that I would run into Snowy again someday.
Almost three months later, I learned that a sheltie rescue near me had taken in two new double merles that would be looking for homes. I took a chance in asking about the female. Maybe by some chance it was my old friend, Snowy. I looked once again at her picture. I hoped that it might be her, but I had prepared myself that there was no way it could be. I was shocked to get an email back from the rescue saying that it was indeed the same Snowy!
And the rest, as they say… is history! Treasure had found her way all the way from Missouri to her foster home only a half hour from my house. I went to pick her up a few days later. She has been with me almost two months now. Every time I look at her, I feel very blessed to have her here with me. She is truly a Treasure.
What a beautiful dog! Thank you for sharing and your blog! We are considering a blind deaf dog for adoption. We currently have a large dog who's about 4 years - he's a very nice boy. The problem is that we both work during the day and have a walker come in to exercise etc. So we would need to leave a few hours at a time. This other dog is large so we don't want to crate. They initially thought he was only blind but then found out he was deaf recently. How difficult is it for them to be home unsupervised? Do most people who adopt blind deaf dogs have someone around most of the day? Thanks so much for your help!
ReplyDeleteHi Deanna,
ReplyDeleteI work during the day. Treasure cannot be left unsupervised with the other dogs because she cannot see or hear the normal dog signals that the other dogs give and that could result in her being seriously hurt if I wasn't around to intervene. She is confined when I am at work and I come home at lunch time to let her out. You can use gates or an ex pen to keep the new dog separate if you don't want to use a crate. You will need to make sure any environment you leave the dog in is very safe. That's another reason I confine Treasure when I'm not around. Too many things could happen and I feel better knowing she is safe. Good luck with your decision. Blind/deaf dogs are amazing, but take your time and consider all the dog's needs... they are not for everyone. Thanks for writing!