Nora
I grew up in New York where my Aunt bred Golden Retrievers. My parents were never ready for us kids to have a dog when my Aunt had available puppies. I always wanted a dog, and was constantly begging my parents for one. Finally, when I was in 8th grade my parents decided I could get a dog from the shelter. This would start the pattern that will continue through the rest of my life.
When I walked into the shelter I was taken by all the little puppies, and thought I wanted one of them. My little sister Jessica, however, went into the adult dog room. She brought me in and showed me a skinny, terrified black and tan dog cowering in a corner. I was immediately moved by the sight of this dog in need. I asked to see her - and with some hesitation the kennel attendant brought her out. This scared little dog sat down in front of me, put her head into my chest and sighed. That was the moment I fell in love.
I had no idea what a Rottweiler was, or what being the responsible owner of one entailed. Nora, as she was named, was an abuse case and was incredibly distrustful of everyone but me. This was really challenging for my entire family, and for house guests. There was a time when my parents thought of returning her to the shelter. But I couldn't give up on Nora, who showed me unconditional love while I struggled with Lyme Disease and the drama of being a teenage girl. We attended obedience class, and spent hours socializing with dogs and people. Nora and I became quite the team, and the trust we shared allowed Nora to trust in others.
Nora was an incredible dog, who rescued me more than I rescued her. She saw me through the end of middle school, high school, college and moving out on my own for the first time. Nora gave me comfort and love whenever I needed it, without question. With Nora, I always felt safe. She changed the opinions of many, including myself, about what a Rottweiler is.
Saying good bye to Nora was the hardest day of my life. I miss her every dog. Her legacy lives on in myself, and in all of the dogs in my life.
When I walked into the shelter I was taken by all the little puppies, and thought I wanted one of them. My little sister Jessica, however, went into the adult dog room. She brought me in and showed me a skinny, terrified black and tan dog cowering in a corner. I was immediately moved by the sight of this dog in need. I asked to see her - and with some hesitation the kennel attendant brought her out. This scared little dog sat down in front of me, put her head into my chest and sighed. That was the moment I fell in love.
I had no idea what a Rottweiler was, or what being the responsible owner of one entailed. Nora, as she was named, was an abuse case and was incredibly distrustful of everyone but me. This was really challenging for my entire family, and for house guests. There was a time when my parents thought of returning her to the shelter. But I couldn't give up on Nora, who showed me unconditional love while I struggled with Lyme Disease and the drama of being a teenage girl. We attended obedience class, and spent hours socializing with dogs and people. Nora and I became quite the team, and the trust we shared allowed Nora to trust in others.
Nora was an incredible dog, who rescued me more than I rescued her. She saw me through the end of middle school, high school, college and moving out on my own for the first time. Nora gave me comfort and love whenever I needed it, without question. With Nora, I always felt safe. She changed the opinions of many, including myself, about what a Rottweiler is.
Saying good bye to Nora was the hardest day of my life. I miss her every dog. Her legacy lives on in myself, and in all of the dogs in my life.
Toby
After losing Nora, our home was empty. My partner and I went to the shelter, because Nora had come from a shelter. We went on the best possible day, because that was the day Toby (then called Neko) was available to meet with.
He was handsome, he was gentle and he pulled like a mule. He was perfect. Toby was a skinny mess who had shown up outside the shelter trying to play with the other dogs through the fence. He evaded capture for three days, and wouldn't even approach people for raw steak. Toby was a stray in every sense of the word.
The first time we left Toby home alone we came home to a destroyed crate, a hole dug in our floor, a shredded curtain, stool and urine everywhere and a frantic screaming husky! Turns out Toby had severe separation anxiety. When we got home he would literally bowl us over and take off running. He just had to run out his anxious energy. Toby ran away 365 days in a row! He was incredibly stand off-ish and didn't want to be pet or snuggle, all he wanted to do was play. Toby was NOTHING like Nora, but he was exactly the challenge I needed.
We worked with our veterinarian to get Toby on anti-anxiety medication and took him to obedience classes. We spent every day training and exercising our high energy, high anxiety boy. It was a long two years with Toby, and then one day something "clicked". He realized that he was ours and we were his - he stopped running away, stopped destroying the house (mostly), and started snuggling.
Toby's love was hard earned, and well worth the work! He's an amazing hiking partner, a great snuggler, the perfect demo dog. Toby has never met a dog or person he didn't like, and he always seems to be happy. He was the breath of fresh air I needed after losing Nora.
He was handsome, he was gentle and he pulled like a mule. He was perfect. Toby was a skinny mess who had shown up outside the shelter trying to play with the other dogs through the fence. He evaded capture for three days, and wouldn't even approach people for raw steak. Toby was a stray in every sense of the word.
The first time we left Toby home alone we came home to a destroyed crate, a hole dug in our floor, a shredded curtain, stool and urine everywhere and a frantic screaming husky! Turns out Toby had severe separation anxiety. When we got home he would literally bowl us over and take off running. He just had to run out his anxious energy. Toby ran away 365 days in a row! He was incredibly stand off-ish and didn't want to be pet or snuggle, all he wanted to do was play. Toby was NOTHING like Nora, but he was exactly the challenge I needed.
We worked with our veterinarian to get Toby on anti-anxiety medication and took him to obedience classes. We spent every day training and exercising our high energy, high anxiety boy. It was a long two years with Toby, and then one day something "clicked". He realized that he was ours and we were his - he stopped running away, stopped destroying the house (mostly), and started snuggling.
Toby's love was hard earned, and well worth the work! He's an amazing hiking partner, a great snuggler, the perfect demo dog. Toby has never met a dog or person he didn't like, and he always seems to be happy. He was the breath of fresh air I needed after losing Nora.
Callie
Two years after getting Toby, everything had finally settled into place. So obviously it was the perfect time to bring home a friend for our dog loving husky. At the time, I was the dog trainer and adoption ambassador at Petco. I had organized a large adoption event in the store, but wasn't planning on bringing anyone home.
My manager asked me if I had seen the dog with the blue eyes. I hadn't, so I went to check it out. I found her in a crate, huddled low, tail wagging, bright blue eyes shining. I took her out of the crate, she sat down in front of me put her head in my chest and started whining. This was so reminiscent of how I met Nora, that I had no choice but to bring her home.
Thankfully I have amazingly tolerant partner, and Toby fell in love with her. At the time her name was Joletta but she looked like a Callie, which stuck. After our first family walk Callie came into our apartment, curled up on our couch and fell asleep. She was officially part of the family.
I tried to start training with Callie right away, but was having an exceedingly difficult time communicating with her. She wasn't even learning her own name! I began to suspect that she was hearing impaired. I performed the really advanced test of banging pots together behind her head. No reaction. Turns out Callie is deaf - this is where I learned the value of hand signals. She quickly learned her name, and all the basic obedience commands I could ask for.
Within a year of having her, Callie started banging her head into things and startling/reacting very easily. A vet visit confirmed she was losing eye sight due to a congenital cataract. Callie is the product of very poor breeding practices, causing her to be beautiful, with her white face and blue eyes, and disabled with hearing & vision impairment. Now that we understand the extent of her disabilities we are able to meet all of Callie's needs. She is an integral member of our family, and a daily inspiration!
My manager asked me if I had seen the dog with the blue eyes. I hadn't, so I went to check it out. I found her in a crate, huddled low, tail wagging, bright blue eyes shining. I took her out of the crate, she sat down in front of me put her head in my chest and started whining. This was so reminiscent of how I met Nora, that I had no choice but to bring her home.
Thankfully I have amazingly tolerant partner, and Toby fell in love with her. At the time her name was Joletta but she looked like a Callie, which stuck. After our first family walk Callie came into our apartment, curled up on our couch and fell asleep. She was officially part of the family.
I tried to start training with Callie right away, but was having an exceedingly difficult time communicating with her. She wasn't even learning her own name! I began to suspect that she was hearing impaired. I performed the really advanced test of banging pots together behind her head. No reaction. Turns out Callie is deaf - this is where I learned the value of hand signals. She quickly learned her name, and all the basic obedience commands I could ask for.
Within a year of having her, Callie started banging her head into things and startling/reacting very easily. A vet visit confirmed she was losing eye sight due to a congenital cataract. Callie is the product of very poor breeding practices, causing her to be beautiful, with her white face and blue eyes, and disabled with hearing & vision impairment. Now that we understand the extent of her disabilities we are able to meet all of Callie's needs. She is an integral member of our family, and a daily inspiration!