When I first started working as a physical therapist in a small downtown hospital....fifteen and a half years ago.. I would often drive by a pack of mean-looking, rowdy and unrestricted dogs. Sometimes there could be thirty or more in the pack. It was scary, even in the safety of my car. Sadly, I had heard that raising dogs for dog fighting was prevalent in that area, and most were not cared for or loved....and were often discarded.
One day, my boss came into the department pushing one of her patients who was sitting in a wheelchair. Upon her lap was the cutest honey-colored fur-ball I had ever seen. Despite the dirt and fleas that covered her body, she was a beauty. Her nose and paw pads were red. The fur on her paws and on her chest was splattered white. And her eyes were so sad for one so young.
My boss had found her wandering the road and decided to save her. Had she not....well, we all knew what her future would most likely be.....there in the side streets of town. So we dropped her off at the vet on our way home to get her checked out.
When my boss discovered that the pup was going to get big...really big...when she was full grown, she was extremely disappointed. She just didn't have enough room in her yard or home to care for such a big girl! I admit, though I felt bed for my boss, I was glad for myself. My heart was already one hundred percent attached to the sad-eyed, honey-colored fur-ball.
On my drive home from the vet, she sat on my lap with her head resting on my shoulder. She didn't move. Her fears melted away in the comfort and protection of our home. She was mine, and I was hers.
-- I wrote this just a few days after we buried our sweet 75 pound girl in October of 2011--but I never posted it. As I opened up my blog today- for the first time in almost 9 years - I found this saved draft about our HoneyGirl. I cried more about the loss of Chloe than about anything else I had endured through my breast cancer treatments. I am so thankful for her! She will forever be my favorite fur-balled girl. (P.S. Don't tell Lacy I said that.)
