Journal

October 2002

You'll never guess who called. Warren answered the phone. He made a face, handed me the phone, and said, "I know it can't be, but it sounds like Mrs D!" There's no mistaking her voice. At first I was trying to convince myself that she was just calling to check in. No such luck. She said her husband was in the hospital this whole time and he just came home last night, so of course now is the right time to get a new dog! She asked if i had any more dogs!!!! I told her it is a very bad idea to get another dog, and no I do not have any dogs. She said, "You think I should never have another animal, don't you" I said, "I think it is a very bad idea." She said, "Well, I'm getting another dog one way or another." She was really being obstreperous. She said she will get one from the Pennysaver. I told her to take care, and I hung up. I can only do so much. =)

Then I ran up and posted DO NOT ADOPT info about her on my list. Since it is potentially libelous to put people's personal info in a DNA post on a public email list, the policy is that we give general info about where they are located and what sort of dog they might try to adopt, and if anybody wants specific info, they can contact me privately. So I told them do not adopt to a senior citizen in her area who wants a cheap small dog. I should grab the Pennysaver tomorrow and warn people not to adopt to her. Would that be bad?

So, how long before she calls me to come and get her new dog? No, i don't think even Mrs. D has the audacity to do that. I don't think I'll be hearing from her again. She was really mad at me. Oh well, I went way out of my way to help her several times. I did my best.

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Groucho/Gretchen's first owners called and wanted to know how she was. So I called them and talked to one of the kids. She is doing fine. Then I called T back and told her she is doing fine. I told her about Mrs. D calling, and she said she thought I was going to say that she asked for Gretchen back.
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I see that there is a 2 year old beagle ("good hunter") in the Pennysaver today. Must sell, $25. I was really tempted to call and warn them about Mrs. D. But i figured if they are selling their dog for $25 they probably don't really care where it ends up anyway, and they'd probably tell her I called and then she'd be all ticked off with me again.

Speaking of dogs, I'm getting one tonight. Some new overenthusiastic volunteer took THREE foster dogs home ("We tried to discourage him...") and obviously he cannot cope, so I am taking one. It is a submissive, unhousetrained male collie mix, 4-6 months old, found as a stray, on antibiotics for kennel cough. Should be fun. They are really crowded so I couldn't say no (when do i ever say no to a dog in need?). She said they are the only shelter in Western PA still accepting animals right now. I guess every shelter is totally full. Scary.

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Murray, the dog from Mad About You... that's who he looks like. =) So we are calling him Murray. They said he is about 6 mos but I think he is older than that. He's awesome. Wonderful temperament, very sweet, loves to play, and he seems like he's gonna be smart. He could be a movie dog, I think. He just has that look and attitude. Since he's a boy, Echo likes him and Brin hates him. I just can't win! So far he hasn't messed with Keek. He's the same colors as Keek, by the way. He is skinny and has kennel cough, but otherwise he's happy and healthy.

Of course I foolishly assumed it would be quick and easy to get him last night, since he was already in a foster home. Obviously he would be all ready to go, right? Nope. He didn't have a microchip. He isn't neutered. He didn't have a collar. And the guy who was fostering him forgot his antibiotics so we had to go to his house and get them.

While we were waiting around at the shelter, Warren saw a cat he liked. It is so hard being the "bad guy" and saying no. I mean, it totally goes against my animal loving nature. It was a nice cat. Two and half year old female, built like a siamese, mostly white with strange markings (i think they said "blue smoke" or something like that). She seemed sweet and affectionate. I didn't *actually* say no, but I spent the car ride home telling him why i thought it was a bad idea. I said I was kinda naive when we got Echo and I actually believed he would help take care of her. Now I know better, and I know that if we got another cat, I would have to take care of it. Plus, it is a nice looking cat and i think it has a good chance of being adopted. Some of the ones he liked in the past were real hard luck cases and I was more sympathetic towards them because I felt like nobody else would want them.

And besides, I think as the primary caretaker of all pets, I should get a chance to pick my own pet one of these times, don't you think? He picked Lucas, Brin, and Echo. (Keek chose us.) And I want a small, adult, dilute tortie cat. Even better if it is sick or messed up or something.

This one that he saw last night was really pretty and sweet. I'll have to see if he is still thinking about it today. Maybe he forgot. Luckily they were closing last night, plus we had to follow the foster guy to his house to get the medicine, so we didn't have time to adopt a cat. =) Of course, the obvious thing is that we really don't need any more animals.

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I just walked Murray around the block. You just cannot look at this dog without smiling! He is so enthusiastic and full of life! I swear, this *is* the dog I've always wanted. Sucks that I have too many dogs! I walk him on the flexi and practice recalls with him. All I have to do is quietly say his name and he spins around and bounds back to me and jumps all over me. Okay, the jumping part is not good, but I like his enthusiasm! This is a dog that could earn obedience and agility titles. If i were at a different point in my life.... geez, this is a once-in-a-lifetime dog! Everything that my dogs do wrong, he does right. Mainly, his temperament is better. He's not reactive and freaky like they are. UPS guy came and Murray just wagged and never made a sound. He's the kind of dog I would be proud to take places, instead of being embarrassed. Yes, he needs work, but it's easy stuff, not major temperament problems like MY two monsters. Sigh...
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Hi Amy, it's Dana, the girl that adopted Gretchen. I wanted to tell you that Gretchen is doing great, she really seems to like us. We taught her how to give paw and how to speak. If there is anything you'd like to know or let us know, you can e-mail me at this address. Thanks alot, I'm really glad we found her, she's a splendid dog!

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Hi Dana, thanks for the update! She's a wonderful dog and I'm glad she found such a good home. I still have the blanket that her first owners gave me. I meant to give it to you when you adopted her, but I forgot. So that gives me a good excuse to come and visit sometime!

It's great to hear from you! Tell your family I said hello, and please keep in touch!

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He's super cool. I had a lady call about him today. She sounded pretty good but she said she'll "get back to me," so you know how that usually goes. I wish she would call me back even if she isn't interested because I found out about another dog that might suit her better. The shelter already has two other dogs lined up for me if this lady adopts Murray (an English Setter and an English Springer Spaniel), but the lady was kinda lukewarm about Murray, so I'm not gonna hold my breath. She did ask if he is crate trained, which is cool. She is a stay-at-home-mom and she home schools her three kids, which sounds like a pretty good situation for a dog.
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The lady never called back about Murray. Big surprise (not). I could move these foster dogs so fast if i just lied about everything. I should have just said, "Sure, he's completely housetrained and he will never, ever make a mistake. I'm absolutely sure of his age, even though he's a stray, and I know for certain that he won't grow any more. He needs no exercise at all and he can run around town off leash, and he CERTAINLY doesn't jump up on people." She would have adopted him in a minute, I'm sure. I'm too honest. It just doesn't pay. Of course, then I'd get him back in 6 months after he doubled in size and they totally screwed him up.
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