I was dogsitting that weekend. I'd done it before. I liked to say it was my fix - I got to play with a friend's pooch for a weekend and then, like my friends' kids, GIVE THEM BACK. That was important. The returning part. Because as much as I love dogs and kids, I didn't particularly want either of my own. Hey, I had a dog growing up (another accidental story) and it was great, but I live in a small condo in Chicago. I have a busy social life. I have no time or flexibility to have a dog. Or so I thought.
I still can't say what made me look at the adoptable pets on the AntiCruelty's website. Like Lydia Bennett, I just did it without much thought (or consideration of the consequences). Lots of big dogs that day. Pits and Rotts - probably abused and injured from attempts to make them fighting dogs. Not that it mattered as I wasn't looking to adopt any one on that site. But there were these four adorable black and white shih tzus named Darcy Jane, Doris, Myra, and Nadine...
The next day, after I gave Maddux back to his people and had my house to myself with no 11pm walks to complete, I looked at the adoptable dogs again. There they all were. All four looking as if life had kicked them in the shins and then demanded an Irish jig. They turned out to be sisters and, somehow, they had reached 8 years old all together. There was a story there and not a nice one I guessed. One in particular stood out. At just 10 pounds, she weighed 5 lbs less than her sisters. Her tongue hung out of the side of her mouth like Snooki at the Shore. Big brown anime eyes stared at me through raggedy clumps of fur.
I checked back the next day. I started to think about her adoption and who would appreciate such a funny little senior dog with luxating patellas and bad teeth. No one probably. People want perfect dogs. Dangit, people are such assholes. Suddenly, there I was, bawling in front of my computer at work, looking at this sorry little pup with little chance in the world. Answering reference red-eyed simply didn't do. No more looking at that devil-site! Yes, that will take care of it. Ignore it and it will go away. My favorite method of solving problems, as evidenced by my broken dishwasher, leaky refrigerator, hair's inch-long roots, pile of mending by the bed, drippy bathtub spout, and the stack of undelivered Brown Elephant donations in the corner.
And it worked, until temptation struck again the next day...
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