My Dog's Story
In this post I will do something different, something more ‘personal’. I’m going to talk about my dog and her story.
I always liked animals – cats, dogs, fishes – and always wanted to have pets. When I lived with my parents we had (they still have) 2 cats, which I deeply love. I’ve been living an adult life for a few years now and last year I got really interested in getting a pet.
I didn’t decide I wanted a pet out of nowhere. I read and did research about it for months. I answered all the typical “Are you sure you want it?” questions and advises:
“You know it’s a lot of work. Are you willing to do it?”
“It’s a big responsibility, you know that?”
“Do you know where and who to leave the pet with, when you travel?”
“Bear in mind that having a pet will bring extra expenses.”
… Amongst others.
The truth is, all these questions and advices are understandable.
Being a pet caretaker is a lot of responsibility.
Moving forward, I decided to have a dog. I’m already an indoors person, so if I had a cat I would probably never leave the house. I love cats, don’t get me wrong. I felt like I needed the energy of a dog in my life.
Now what? Am I getting a dog of a certain breed? Am I rescuing/adopting one?
I’ve always been a defender of the oppressed, so rescuing an abandoned dog seemed like a good idea. When I was a kid, I’d want to take home any animal I’d seen abandoned. If it depended on me, we’d have a house full of them.
It’s a little bit different when you’re the only caretaker and you have a full time job, though. You want to know what to expect, if it’s going to fit your lifestyle, if the time you have to walk/play is enough for the dog’s energy level, if it’s the right size for you, etc.
So I started researching, which is something I’m good at. In about a couple of weeks, I knew all the breeds out there, their ‘personalities’, energy levels, life expectancies, sizes and fur types. I had a list of breeds I liked and I was willing to forget about my past rescuer self to actually get one. With money. I even had a list of all the breeders around I could contact to get the dog breed I wanted.
Something didn’t feel right, though.
Every time I browse animal charity pages, I felt sad. There’re so many dogs without an owner, just there, waiting for someone to love them. I didn’t (and still don’t) have anything against breeding, if done correctly and legally, and people that get pure breeds. It’s a choice. I felt deeply in my heart that the child that wants to give love to all the abandoned animals, was still here.
The next phase of the “Having a Pet” plan started. Browse charities websites, go to kennels and ask people I know about abandoned dogs. I still wanted to have a dog that kind of fits my lifestyle and personality, so I needed time to think about it.
One day, when I was having dinner at my parent’s house, my brother told me he knew a lady that finds owners for abandoned animals. He asked me if I wanted to give her my contact. I said ok, and didn’t expect too much out of it.
In the next days, she emailed me some dogs’ images. I told her I was looking for a small sized dog, as I travel often and wanted to take the dog with me in travels and hotels. There was a small scared looking dog in one of the photos. She was small but nothing like the breeds I selected previously. I decided to go see her.
When I entered in the lady’s house, there was a lot of dogs barking and running around. She happens to also take care of pets while the owners are away. I waited until another lady came with the dog.
Here's a photo of her I took when I went to the lady's house. She was all scared!
When the dog came, she was super scared, not active at all. I tried to get closer but she didn’t want anything to do with me, just hiding away and not moving at all. The other dogs were giving me more attention than that one. The ladies were telling me how good it was to have such a quiet dog. I was rather confused. I wanted a pet that I could play with and be happy with. There was something wrong.
I didn’t know what I was doing and without thinking too much I said – “I’m taking her.” What? I took a decision I’ve been trying to take for months in a second, without thinking. I said I wanted to take her home for a night to see how I adapt and then see how it goes.
I knew something was wrong. I asked the lady if the dog was sick because I’ve never seen such energy less behavior. She said there was nothing wrong and that’s her ‘personality’. Ok.
One of the first pictures at home!
I took her home. She peed in the parking floor of my flat building. I ran to the flat, got some cleaning products, left her in the flat, and quickly went to clean it. When I was back in the flat, there was poop in the whole living room corner. I just cleaned it. I never told her off or got stressed. I gave her some food. She still had the same behavior – very low on energy, hiding, not wanting any sort of contact. I just let her be and stayed in the living room with her.
I didn’t know what to do. I thought I’d be one of the “dog parents” that make videos of their pets growing up, playing, being cute. Instead, I had an almost adult dog (she was 11 months old at the time) that was pretty much responsive-less. I tried to remain calm and I regret my decision for that moment. I wanted to give up and send her back, but I knew a dog is not a toy you can just return if you didn’t like it.
I “slept” on the living room sofa. “Slept” because I was waking up about 3 in 3 hours to clean the dog’s poop. She was literally pooping everywhere. It got to a point where it was just part of the routine. Luckily I didn’t have any carpet or rugs at the time, only a wooden floor.
I never owned a dog before, everything I was doing was off instinct – not telling her off, leaving her alone, praising her when she went to the pee pad to pee. The next morning, I still didn’t know what to do. I was alone, tired and pretty much desperate. I wanted to return her.
I called my mom in hope of wise words or at least some support. She came over and we chatted. She told me to have patience and calm down. We named her Mel, which means Honey in Portuguese. We knew something was wrong with Mel and I decided to take her to a vet. It was Sunday, so I called the emergency vet services. I was more relaxed now.
I took her to the vet to found out she had a food intoxication – the reason for all the poop. The vet gave her some medicine and I took some home to give her later. In the same day, at night, she was a different dog. Mel started to be more active, want more attention and just be like a normal dog. I was happy. I didn’t want to return her. We bonded so much on these 24 hours it seemed like we’ve been together for months.
After she recovered from the sickness, she was a changed and happy dog! This was one of her first walks outside.
That’s it. Mel is a happy almost 2 years old good girl. She’s playful, smart and super loyal. She still has a lot of fears, which we are progressively overcoming. In the end, nothing went as expected but I couldn’t have chosen a better fur friend.
Her first time staying in a Hotel, in Porto
If you want to check what Mel's been up to, you can follow her on Instagram.
This story makes me think that no matter how much planning we do, the best in life happen spontaneously. Do you have a pet story too? Would love to know.