My parents bought an eight week old yellow Labrador from a breeder when I was nine; for 13 years, Snickers was the best companion a girl could want. I've known for a while that I wanted to get my own dog as soon as I responsibly could and so, with Mom and Dad's approval, I started looking into Lab Rescue when I realized I'd be moving back to DC. Why Lab Rescue, you ask? Well, first of all, I was realistic about my ability to properly care for and train a puppy. I wanted a dog that was housebroken and that could be left alone for a few hours a day without destroying everything in reach. Second, buying a purebred lab from a breeder would be prohibitively expensive. And third - most importantly, actually - I knew that there were dozens of wonderful dogs in my area who were desperate for loving forever homes.
We don't know what Charlie's life was like before we adopted him in July. Based on the records we have, we think that we're his fifth home - he had his first owners, and then he was in a shelter, and then he stayed in a vet's kennels, and then he was fostered with Lab Rescue. He doesn't seem to have been abused in any way; he must just not have been wanted. (Or, possibly, his owners were unable to care for him appropriately and so gave him up, but then he probably wouldn't have gotten to the shelter in the first place, so who knows.) Gesci, who has adopted two dogs, told me recently that her husband's argument against adopting an adult dog is that you miss out on formative months and years, which I understand, but I think that it's also exactly the argument for adopting an adult dog. Rescues probably haven't had the best of experiences, and it's a blessing to be able to give them a loving forever home.
And, equally, it's a blessing to be a forever home. It's only been a few months, but I can't remember a time before we had Charlie and he's in every vision I have of my future. I could describe how my heart glows when Charlie wakes me up with snuffles and kisses in the morning or how I get butterflies when I hear him running down the stairs to greet me when I come home from work in the afternoon. I could go on about how he stretches when he's happy or how he dances in a circle of excitement when he sees his leash or how he looks optimistically at each tree just in case there's a squirrel. I could tell you about how I'm mentally decorating the apartment I'll share with Jon to be Charlie-friendly or about how I can't wait until we're one of those couples that goes jogging with a leash and a stroller. But you've seen my Instagram feed and you've read my tweets, so you know. I won't overload you with more gushing. What I will close on, though, is this: please think about adopting a shelter dog. If you're considering getting a pet, remember the thousands of animals across the country in need of love and care. And ask yourself if you could be a forever home.
