Hi Jim ..... Your post was wonderful, and so very true. I wish everyone understood how important these little creatures become to us .... they're part of our family .... truly unconditional love.
I'm finally getting another dog on Feb. 3 and I can't wait. Molly died a year ago and I'm ready. This little fellow is part bassett hound and part cocker ... I'm picturing this long body with short legs .... he's not like that as I've seen pictures of him. I've communicated with the foster Mom almost daily finding out as much as I could about him. Apparently he is another velcro-dog, like my Molly was ..... perfect! Just what I need. I'm going to name him Keller which in Gaelic means "little companion." I'm Scotch.
I moved from MD to VA about 1-1/2 years ago at the insistence of my 2 girls who live here, and my son, but he lives near D.C. I did not want to move ... I loved it there, my condo, my friends, church, community .... just everything. Well, finally I relented and moved. After 1-1/2 yrs. I just am not happy here. I love seeing my girls and 2 grandkids, but that's infrequent and then here I am. So, I decided it was time for another little friend .... thus Keller will be coming to my home soon. My kids just don't get it .... they're totally against me getting another dog .... why? oh, he might make me fall (I'm not feeble), I'll have to clean up his do-do (like I didn't with Molly), the expense of taking care of him ... Molly was sickly from the beginning as she was a puppy mill dog. They are all totally against this and letting me know it loud and clear, and yet it makes no sense. About 6 months ago I sent the 3 of them a brief article about Bipolar 2, which is me, hoping they would be a bit more understanding of everything, not just a dog. Well, I don't know if they read it or not as it doesn't show in their behavior. I saw my therapist today - he's in MD and I make the 3 hr. drive up, and we're going to start to meet every week for awhile while I get over this hump. It's that same old deep dark hole, with me in it, covered by a cold wet black blanket and no one cares. I know a little friend will help .... just the joy of having another snuggler with me will be wonderful. I wish my kids could be more compassionate, and I wish I'd have never sold my condo in MD and moved to VA.
abby