Be Positive

Be positive. That’s what I’m trying to do. It’s hard sometimes… to see the good. Because there's just so much bad. Everywhere. There are chained dogs with no shelter—starving & freezing to death. Pit bulls fighting each other for their lives. Puppy mills breeding dogs in deplorable conditions... while millions of others die in shelters every year, due to the pet overpopulation. I look around, & this is what I see. I witness these truths. Every single day.

But today... I am trying to be positive, & here’s how I’m able to do that…

I remember the lives saved. I think about the undying hope in a wounded dog’s eyes… and the incredible experience of watching that hope turn to joy… the joy of finally being safe, happy, & loved. I think about the amazing gift I'm given each time I witness a dog being adopted by their new forever family. For many, this is the first time in their life that they've ever truly been home.

And what really touches my heart, is that some of my former foster dogs will make a trip to visit me at my business, a boarding kennel named Lucky Dog Retreat. I want to share the story of one such dog. An amazing boy named Bear.

Last summer, my friend Mary Ann called me about a dog named Bear who needed my help. Bear’s family had chained him up for much of his life with little attention, and now they were simply tired of dealing with him. Their plan was to dump him at a local dumpster... & drive away... without him.

Just before they dumped him, Mary Ann begged the family to let me help them. Then, she called me.

As Mary Ann shared this information with me, my heart broke to pieces. I pictured Bear... in the moment he'd be dumped like trash, by the family who promised to love him forever. I saw him alone, afraid, and confused... chasing after the family... who left him for dead. The only family he'd ever known... the only family he'd ever wanted... the only family he'd ever loved.  The family... who was never coming back for him.

My own special dog, Rudy, had just passed away days before, & I wasn’t quite ready to take in another foster dog... due to my heartbreak. But... Bear needed me. And it turns out, I needed him, too.

That day, I rescued Bear from his sad situation. But in truth, he's the one who rescued me. I was completely broken when Bear came to me, and Bear helped me deal with the pain... like no one else ever could. 

He'll never know how much he meant to me during that time. He'll never know that he's the one who really saved me. He'll never know... that I'm the lucky one.

In looking for the perfect family for this special boy... I couldn't have found a better match. I

t turns out... my childhood babysitter had recently lost her dog, Jake. She saw my pictures of Bear on facebook, & she instantly fell in love with him. Finally... Bear was going home.

Bear was adopted by the Sims family last September. It was the happiest day of his life.

And this past Sunday, Bear-Bear came to visit me at Lucky Dog Retreat. I can’t even describe the joy I feel when I see one of my old foster babies living their new life. Happy. Healthy. Loved. Adored. Cherished. It’s unlike any other feeling in the world.

Even though I miss him deeply... in my heart, I know that Bear is exactly where he was always meant to be. God just asked me to get him there.

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