Something overcame me the winter of 2012. Winters are always hard for a lot of us in Minnesota. As much as we love the pristine powdery snow early in winter, it all tends to drag on.
I started to think about getting a dog.
Like most people I’ve always loved animals. As an adult, I’ve mostly stuck with cats and fish. I adore cats and their insane shenanigans. But if I had a dog… s/he could come out in the yard with me and garden. We could go places and hang out. It would be so much fun! I really struggled with the decision though. Getting a dog would be a big change and an even bigger commitment so I thought on it and we talked it over for months.
Eventually, I started to look around at dogs available for adoption. Wow. What an overwhelming experience!! After months of searching and agonizing, I finally emailed the people over at Safe Hands Animal Rescue about these adorable puppies they had.They invited me to come to a Meet and Greet to meet the dogs and I was so excited!
We went to meet the dogs and holy crap the puppies were crazy adorable. They were also FAR smaller than I thought they would be. It’s always a little hard to tell from pictures. My youngest child was only 2 at the time so a small puppy was just not going to be ideal. I was sad, but we decided to go home and keep looking.
On the way out I ran into a woman with this adorable black dog. She asked if we wanted to meet him and… I just fell in love. He was so cute and so sweet. He was also a little terrified! He huddled tightly against her but his little face was just so loving. He’s an all black mutt. My vet guesses that he’s a Cocker Spaniel/Papillon mix and his adorable, fluffy butt is perfect!
I was sort of surprised I hadn’t seen him on their website but when I went back to check, there he was. I just missed him because he looked like a very, very different dog! Also, he had a name I have super negative associations with so I must have just skipped it!
The next several weeks were incredibly hard. I emailed back and forth with my dog’s foster mom constantly. I filled out applications and got all my vet’s information. When the foster mom was finally able to bring him by for a visit it was just fantastic. My dogie just climbed up into my lap and hung out. The kids loved him and my cat just rolled her eyes.
I decided that yes, I was in love with this dog and I needed him to come live with us forever. Waiting for all the final paperwork to be processed was so hard. A week later, his foster mom brought him home to us to stay.
I named him Remy, which is short for Don Remington Quixote Lorca. He’s very fancy! We’ve spent every day since he came here together. In the years since, he’s gotten over his car anxiety and he recently let me trim his nails without any complaint! He’s a lovable angel and is never far from my side. He loves the kids, going for walks, chasing balls and frolicking in the snow.
I absolutely adore him and couldn’t imagine life without him! My adopted dog means the world to me. I’ve started to volunteer with Safe Hands since I adopted Remy and it’s a great organization. If you’re looking for a dog, remember to adopt not shop and if you live in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, check out the dogs available through Safe Hands.
This is the original profile image of Remy that I somehow overlooked! Thank you to Safe Hands for permission to use this image
