Thursday, January 12, 2006

N
...I

.....C
.......E
.
D
...O
.....G


This morning. .
&
Some dog thoughts

It is a pretty, foggy, morning in Montgomery. In about an hour the sun will break through for a pretty sight. So far I have gone over e-mail and looked at the paper. The first I read in the paper is "114 Antique Classic Cars," followed by "224 Motorcycles," then willy-nilly.

Item of interest: There are less than four columns of "320 Dogs" for sale ads in this morning's Chronicle. There were more than nine before Christmas. I am hoping they all found good homes.

Are store bought dogs any better than free ones? Buying a dog might be similar to adopting a kid. Adopting a kid a pretty big step, most adopted children later in life have really appreciated the new opportunity given to them. Somebody has to want them. That helps them feel wanted, even if they weren't planned to be born their new parents planned to be with and to love them. If I were adopted I would want to find out about my birth parents. Maybe meet them if things seemed right.

So buying a dog is a big step with planning. Sometimes it might be love at first sight, maybe in a pet store. But they were loved. Does that make them better? Of course not, all dogs are created equally and should have equal rights.

[Does this sound like God's love for us? In fact, Ephesians tells us we are God's adopted children. Sure, but to talk about it I would have to go into how a dog loves his master. Then I would have tell how in loving God we should be as devoted as dogs are to their masters. A two way unconditional love. Not time for that this morning.]

Free dogs aren't any cheaper or easier on maintenance. They still need their shots, grooming, and proper diet. I have read where beagles require at least one hour of quality time a day. Adi sure does. She needs her bath today so she can get her Bordetella vaccination, and her nails clipped. If it is time for her physical the bill will end up $75 or $85. It usually does. Twice a year.

Adi wasn't free to Karen. She paid $250 for her, papers would have cost a bit more. Adi was free to us. Have you ever had a beagle puppy? Karen lived in a third floor apartment with no elevators. Adi needed walking quite often and was too small to navigate those steps by herself. Adi came to our house with a door directly to the back yard.

We didn't know the whole story. Adi was into eating walls and floors and shoes and whatever else she could find. Maybe Karen should have paid thousands of dollars for her, would that have changed things? Would she have put her at the door in a rich neighborhood if she were free? Or drowned her? Does value of the dog have any thing to do with things like that? How about the value of a kid? Some are 'throw-away,' you know.

We kept Adi for almost a year, then Karen moved into a house. After Adi stopped eating the walls. Adi was now in her happy family. In about a year Karen had to move again, this time Adi could negotiate steps but beagles were not allowed at her new home, another apartment complex. The rule was made because some beagles howl. So Adi came back to live with us.

Adi is nine years old now. She thinks she is my dog. She doesn't know she was free and adopted to me. We pay a lot for routine upkeep, that's alright, we love her. Karen is back in house with a door to the back yard, fenced and all. Adi loves to visit Karen, actually she goes wild and cries when they first greet. Even though she loves Karen, Adi is ready to come home with me when we leave, she thinks she is my dog.

Comments:
Jim
Our most expensive dog cost us twenty dollars. We bought it from a private individual as a puppy. By the way, the stock is in Denver and tonight is "Good Dog Night". According to the news they will have over 750 dogs there.
Ralph
 
I've had lots of dogs. Paid for and free. And they were all good..
 
Beagles are so cute and smart! Adi is lucky to have such a wonderful home.

My neice gave us our dog but she paid quite a bit for him. He's been worth every penny, both to her and to us! She now has one of his offspring and she takes that dog everywhere!!

But all dogs are great. The pounds are full of loving dogs. Some get lucky, but so many don't.
 
My Dad bred and raised beagles for a long time. He also "showed" them and belonged to a beagle club. I don't remember any of them howling though. They are the cutest things. I always 'adopted' the runt of the litters.
 
And, once God adopts you, there's no going back.
 

Post a Comment





<< Home

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?