Tuesday, May 18, 2010

My New Old Shabby Dog

I've always been a dog-lover.
I can remember sitting with my arms wrapped around the family Irish setter when I was feeling blue. Stroking Edie's silky ears always made me feel better.

I have a soft spot for "forgotten" pets. I'm the girl who climbed over the guard rail at the I-95 exit to rescue an abandoned kitten. Wearing a dress and heels.

So when I heard barking in the church parking lot after Bible study two weeks ago, I had to investigate. The girls and I found a small crowd of people huddled around a tiny little ball of fur.

Someone had driven into the church parking lot, tied a little black Pomeranian to a parking lot sign, and left.

The church groundskeeper is somewhat of a curmudgeon, and refused to let me call T to see if we could bring the dog home. He told me, "You don't need to mess with this dog. It's old." Then he hopped in his car and drove off to the SPCA.

Never one to appreciate being told what I do and do not need, I told T the whole story and he begrudingly made a trip to the SPCA on his way home to inquire about the dog.

That was two weeks ago, and to make a long story short, we finalized the adoption yesterday afternoon.

She is my unconventional Mother's Day gift. T rather liked the idea of not having to go out and shop for me this year.

This is Penelope. We call her Penny. (forgive the poor lighting...we haven't seen sunlight in forever)
I have a thing for the character, Penelope, from Homer's The Odyssey. (And maybe I'm a bit of a LOST-aholic as well.)

Penny is around 12 years old. She mostly seems to want to sleep in her bed, but I could tell she was looking for love by the way she nudged her little nose into my hand while I drove home yesterday.

Penny prefers Emma's bed over the (identical) one we bought for her, but Emma is willing to share if it means she gets a taste of Penny's canned chicken (we're trying to wean her off of what has apparently been a long-standing diet of "people food.")
I bet some of you are shaking your heads and wondering, "What is this girl thinking, adopting an old shabby dog like that?"

I can only reply that it broke my heart to think of that poor tiny pup living the rest of her days shut up in a cage, listening to the echo of barking in the SPCA's hallways. I don't know how much time she'll have with us, but I think she deserves a warm bed and a little love.

You might think she's shabby, but I think she's shabby chic.
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34 comments:

  1. this made my day...hugs to you & penny :)

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  2. Lucky little Penelope!

    Oh, gosh, she's adorable. Your soft heart is one of the things I love about you. Your not wishing to be told what you do and do not need is another thing I love about you. Your fondness for dogs is yet another. So if you say she's shabby chic, then I agree.

    An unconventional gift, perhaps, but one I can certainly understand!

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  3. so cute..
    the picture of you with Edie...is almost identical to one of me and the Irish Setter I had as a child - her name was Fancy :)

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  4. Don't you know 12 is the new 5 in dog years?!? hee hee

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  5. Kudos to you! Love is never wrong...

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  6. I think I love you!! She is wonderful and so are you. What a great Mother's Day gift.
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  7. She is a cutie...and I love the name!

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  8. Oh she's SOOOO cute & tiny! I just want to snuggle her up. How sweet of you guys to adopt her. :-D

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  9. That is so wonderfully sweet! Brought a tear to my dog-lover eye :-)

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  10. Amanda, this just made my day..I have a feeling your sweet spirit added a few years to sweet Penny's life..God Bless you:))

    Barb

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  11. I think what you guys did in bringing Penny into your home is wonderful.

    And you know I think the name is truly inspired!

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  12. Amanda, what a great heart you have! I can so relate to your animal rescues...our Lilah cat is very old and was abandoned on a base in Utah when the family moved. When my husband heard about it, we had to check her out and needless to say...she has now been our cat for the last 5 years and we love her so much. What a sweet little dog. Makes me sad to think someone can just abandon an animal like that. I know Penny will have lots of love and a great life with your family. You are a wonderful spirit filled with love and kindness and that's why I love visiting with you!

    Hugs and love friend,
    Victoria

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  13. I would have hated to have to drive all the way to Virginia to adopt her!! I'm so glad to hear there are people out there that will go out of their way to bring comfort to a little being that only wants to be loved. May you and your family be blessed as much as you have blessed Penny!

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  14. Aw, good for you! :) Even puppies in their twilight years deserve love!

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  15. Totally shabby chic :)

    Emma looks pretty excited to have a new sister!

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  16. I think she's fabulous! I love the name :)

    So sweet of you to take her in!

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  17. Bless your Heart :) I am glad there are people like you in this world :)

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  18. This warms my heart. I think it's wonderful that you took that poor pup in. Good for you!

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  19. She's a sweet little ball of black fur, isn't she? Soo cute! I'm a dog lover too, although my dogs are always BIG!! I've never had a little dog. I'm afraid little ones would get squashed with all the running little feet at my house.

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  20. Love it! The dog must definitely go with your home's decor. So a little shabby chic in the canine end of things is totally appropriate. Good on ya!

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  21. Good for You!!! Great for Penelope! I understand totally, we have three cats that more or less we took in or they were off to the pound. So with a lot of kitty hair, and major asthma I keep pretty busy but it is worth it. lol

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  22. Oh, so this is the unconventional gift. :) I was curious. How sweet of you to save this poor dog. And, I love the "shabby chic" comment. :)

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  23. Can you believe that someone would do that to a poor little dog. Miss Penny is a lucky girl to have a home with you now.

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  24. I would have done the same thing!!!! It is wonderful that you are giving her a wonderful place to call home! ALL dogs need a home and love....and you are just what Penny needed!

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  25. You are the sweetest!! Love your shabby chic dog:)

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  26. I think she is shabby chic too! Way to go :)

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  27. awwwwww..... I don't think you're crazy. I think you are kind and sweet.

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  28. amanda, i wished everyone had the tender heart you do!

    she's your *lucky penny!*

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  29. So sweet and caring of you to open your heart and rescue that adorably shabby little Penny! Not crazy at all! She is a mother's day gift that will bring you both happiness everyday!

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  30. I love this story! Congrats to you and Penny--and good for you for making a dog's senior years special. Old dogs are wonderful!

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  31. I'm so glad it worked out for you to adopt her. She's so lucky to have your family. So, what do the girls think of her? I rescued a stray cat from HI and although he isn't living his life in "paradise" anymore, at least he knows he will be fed everyday.

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  32. Oh - that is so sweet! You have such a kind and loving heart. She is so lucky to be part of your sweet family!

    Thanks for always leaving such sweet comments! I love medieval historical fiction -- some of my favorites are Edward Rutherford's Sarum, Ken Follett's World Without End and Pillars of The Earth. They are wonderful books -- all about medieval times, cathedral building and class struggles. Some of my favorite books ever!

    I hope you are having a great week so far Amanda!

    XOOX
    Jen

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  33. Aw, that's so nice!
    (So, you could have taken her home for free, but thanks to the groundskeeper you had to pay to adopt her? Oh well, probably not a bad deal after all since I imagine they gave her a check-up and all that.)

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  34. LOL...your new little dog is sooo cute, and totally shabby chic!!

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