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A while back, I mentioned my heart dog in passing.
I wasn't ready to share her with all of you back then... but I think I am ready now.
I wasn't ready to share her with all of you back then... but I think I am ready now.
Lady was a Maremma Sheepdog.
She was a rescue, in the truest sense of the word - as in, she was seized by the RCMP and housed at the shelter where I volunteered.
The abuse case made the news. She was one of two dogs removed. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.2714094
She was a rescue, in the truest sense of the word - as in, she was seized by the RCMP and housed at the shelter where I volunteered.
The abuse case made the news. She was one of two dogs removed. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.2714094
Being that she had been a working livestock guardian dog, Lady was naturally aggressive toward strange people and animals.
She had a bite history and she was not a very trusting dog, but that was fine by me - I wasn't a very trusting person. We had a thing or two in common.
She had a bite history and she was not a very trusting dog, but that was fine by me - I wasn't a very trusting person. We had a thing or two in common.
Volunteers weren't supposed to go inside of Lady's pen, she was considered a danger, but somehow... something clicked between us.
It started out by feeding her through the fence, and soon enough I was able to sit inside the kennel. The day she chose to sit beside me was magical.
It started out by feeding her through the fence, and soon enough I was able to sit inside the kennel. The day she chose to sit beside me was magical.
As time passed, Lady began to recognize the sound of the car.
She would bark fiercely at the fence when a stranger drove up to the shelter, but when I came, there was only silence, followed by a loose body and a wagging tail.
She would bark fiercely at the fence when a stranger drove up to the shelter, but when I came, there was only silence, followed by a loose body and a wagging tail.
We spent hours sitting in the sunshine.
I would pet her ears and her chest and kiss her on the forehead, and she would ask for attention by pawing at me and rolling on her back.
I was asked, several times, wasn't I scared?
I never was.
I would pet her ears and her chest and kiss her on the forehead, and she would ask for attention by pawing at me and rolling on her back.
I was asked, several times, wasn't I scared?
I never was.
Lady was never my dog, not in the technical sense.
She did not live in my house, or sleep in my bed. My name was not engraved on her tags. She made a place in my heart, though.
I loved that dog fiercely, there was something special about her.
She did not live in my house, or sleep in my bed. My name was not engraved on her tags. She made a place in my heart, though.
I loved that dog fiercely, there was something special about her.
For a vast majority of the time Lady was at the shelter, she was police property.
That means she had limited interaction with the public and she could not legally be adopted out. She was only being housed at our facility.
This lasted for over a year.
That means she had limited interaction with the public and she could not legally be adopted out. She was only being housed at our facility.
This lasted for over a year.
Eventually, Lady got justice.
The man who abused her was sentenced to six months in prison and he will never be legally allowed to own an animal again. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.3009009
The man who abused her was sentenced to six months in prison and he will never be legally allowed to own an animal again. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cbc.ca/amp/1.3009009
Unfortunately, by the time Lady was officially in the shelter's custody it was too late for her.
Lady was diagnosed with extremely aggressive cancer. By the time she was diagnosed, it had already spread to her organs and her bones.
She was only given a few months.
Lady was diagnosed with extremely aggressive cancer. By the time she was diagnosed, it had already spread to her organs and her bones.
She was only given a few months.
I can not put in to words the agony of finding out that my girl was dying.
There is no happy ending to this story, because Lady did not get to live out her senior years in a loving home. She never truly had a family.
Except me, and the rest of the volunteers and employees.
There is no happy ending to this story, because Lady did not get to live out her senior years in a loving home. She never truly had a family.
Except me, and the rest of the volunteers and employees.
Lady lost weight, and she lost energy, but she never lost the spark of excitement when I walked in to the kennel.
Her tail wagged, and she rolled on her back for belly rubs, and got excited when I pulled out a leash. Even when she was sick and couldn't keep food down.
Her tail wagged, and she rolled on her back for belly rubs, and got excited when I pulled out a leash. Even when she was sick and couldn't keep food down.
When things got too bad, when Lady was in pain and didn't have a zest for life, she was humanely euthanized.
She took a piece of my heart with her, and it's been so hard to walk in the shelter and see her kennel empty or a different dog inside.
I haven't volunteered in a while.
She took a piece of my heart with her, and it's been so hard to walk in the shelter and see her kennel empty or a different dog inside.
I haven't volunteered in a while.
I'll never be able to ask Lady if the time that we spent with her made up for the cruelty she endured, but I hope it did.
I'll never be able to tell her how sorry I am that she didn't get to live the life she deserved, but I hope she knows.
I was blessed to have her in my life.
I'll never be able to tell her how sorry I am that she didn't get to live the life she deserved, but I hope she knows.
I was blessed to have her in my life.
You were a good girl, Lady.
Even with your history and all of your complexities, you were a good girl.
Even with your history and all of your complexities, you were a good girl.
To end this thread on a happier note...
If you've been following me for long enough, you might recall that last summer, I visited a friend in Bonavista and met some very special dogs.
If you've been following me for long enough, you might recall that last summer, I visited a friend in Bonavista and met some very special dogs.
These dogs are not Lady, there will never be a dog quite like her... and yet, when they put their paws on my shoulders to look in my eyes or pawed at my leg for attention, I saw so much of her in them. https://twitter.com/Casper_Kerrivan/status/1133890250261053440?s=19
