Second Chances

I roll over in bed and stretch, and she turns her head, cozied up in our duvet, and then turns her big, brown, soulful eyes to me. She stretches and yawns and makes a funny little noise as she does. This is Lola, she is part of our family. Happy, spoiled, 30 pounds of love.

This wasn’t always her life. She didn’t have the best or happiest start.

Four years ago, after having always been a cat family, we decided we might like to try adding a dog to our gang. The only way to convince my husband that we could handle another animal in our home, was to tell him that we would do so by looking at rescues, dogs that needed a home, to see if we could find the right fit.

In walked Lola.

She had been used as a breeder for the first four to five years of her life, at a puppy mill or puppy farm in the United States. We heard that it was perhaps an Amish puppy mill, maybe somewhere in Pennsylvania. She was being used to create Puggle puppies, a relatively new and in-demand breed, a cross between a Pug and a Beagle. I can understand the demand, they are an adorable and mostly well-mannered dog, a great companion. What I cannot understand is using these animals as baby-making machines for a profit.

From what we know, she lived in a cage, repeatedly impregnated and had litter after litter. When she was no longer productive I suppose, she was discarded and sent to a pound, where rescuers picked her up along with other discarded dogs who were perhaps destined for euthanasia had they not been adopted. She was vetted, and fixed, and then started her journey towards her new life in Canada.

It was obvious what she had been through, and also what she had missed out in life. Her belly and her nipples hung low from years of repeated use. She was timid, but at the same time, she seemed hopeful and open to new experiences. She needed time and training to adjust to life in a home and yard, as she had likely been confined to a cage, and was therefore not house-broken.

She quickly learned the joys and habits of using the lawn to do her doggy-business. Walking on the sidewalks on a leash was a new experience for her, and she has since come such a long way, yet she is still surprised and fearful when the loud sounds of the large garbage trucks pass by us on our neighbourhood streets. She has learned to live and thrive with multiple kids in the house, as well as multiple cats.

After our walks now, she flops over on our front lawn, a ritual she has created for herself, and rolls on her back with what appears to be a giant smile on her face. At times like this we watch her, full of a feeling of joy and satisfaction that we were able to give her this kind of life, give her this second chance. She brings us happiness and companionship every day, and we know that any dog that joins our family in the future will also be rescued from a difficult start.

If you are thinking of adding to your family, please seriously consider scanning the numerous rescue operations and local shelters for a pet who is looking for its’ second chance, and will fill your heart and life with love.