Abby's Story

The sunset over the coast range tonight is so beautiful. I imagine it is wonderful over at the beach this evening. It reminded me of our first beach trip after we adopted Abby last September. She's a wonderful Old English Sheepdog, the second one we've been lucky to have in our family. We lost Woofles last May and we still miss him. (I posted a picture of Woofles with our Standard Poodle, Bonbon, on March 13, 2008.) The picture above was snapped from our tripod at the end of the day of that first beach trip with Abby. We've been so busy lately that we haven't been back, and intend to go in two weeks. Abby and Bonbon will be thrilled. Since my blog didn't exist yet last holiday season I am going to post "Abby's" Christmas letter here now, as it tells her story. (Well, ok, I helped her some . . . oh alright, a lot!).

December 2007

Happy Holiday Greetings to you!

I have been elected by my new family to tell you about what happened with us this year.

My name is Abby and I’m a beautiful and gentle Old English Sheepdog, age seven, who has settled into her third – and final – home after traveling from California to Texas in the summer, and then to Oregon in September. It’s true that my new Daddy and Mommy have had an interesting year. So has Bonbon, my new pal, their six-year old Standard Poodle. I guess all these cats have had a fine year as well, but the only one to have swapped stories with me is the new kitten, Shiva. She feels as fortunate as I do to have found this family full of love, but she is a darling little lovebug and who could have resisted her? I, on the other hand, experienced a great shock this year when I was returned by my owner in California to the Texas Old English Sheepdog Rescue foster home where I had landed two years ago after having been rejected by my original family in Oklahoma. So I think my story is the best in my family for its pathos, bravery, excitement, redemption, renewal, and love.

I lived in style for four years in Oklahoma, where I was born. My original owner was a successful contractor and he and his wife gave me a grand house and property. In return I accompanied her to puppy training classes and we won a gold star on our certificate for best obedience. My new mommy and daddy have my complete file with the certificate in it.

Anyway, I considered my life to be secure with those folks in Oklahoma after four years together until some terrible storm named Katrina struck a portion of this country and my owner went down to Mississippi to place bids on cleaning up afterward. While he was gone his wife, my obedience buddy, left me at the humane society near our home. Well, I wasn’t the average inmate and someone at the shelter was kind enough to contact the Old English Sheepdog rescue group in Oklahoma on my behalf. They were busy helping all kinds of animals who were lost in the storm so a call for assistance was placed to the rescue group in Texas, and I stayed with the nice foster dad there until my second owner adopted me. We lived in Texas for awhile, then he got married and we all moved to California. It was a good life and I was well cared for. But some country named Japan had a new job for my owner and they couldn’t take me, so the three of us drove back to Texas to that nice foster dad and the next thing I knew my bed, bowls, leash, and toy were put in his house and I stayed with my things.

In the meantime my new daddy and mommy had an Old English Sheepdog named Woofles, who got very sick and blind and they cried when they lost him in May. They showed me his picture and he was great looking with his pure white head. They must have missed him very much because they said that life just wasn’t the same without an Old English Sheepdog in their house! They began to look for a grown-up OES and completed applications in several states. Well, my foster dad in Texas thought we would all make one another happy and he called them to say that I could be their dog if they could transport me from his house to their Oregon home. My rescue organization absolutely will not fly dogs. He told my new folks about a company in Texas that takes pets door-to-door in a van. And that’s how I got here! Along the way we picked up and delivered pets, and we drove right past my former California town – I could smell that I was near and I was rather confused for a bit.

I am all settled in now and am loved beyond measure. My new neighbors and veterinarians think I am great and I smile for everyone. I wash Bonbon’s face and I cuddle my cats. We have a Christmas tree and soon I will add to my growing collection of toys that I nuzzle and treasure.

One of my favorite things to do is to be very still and study my mommy and daddy to intensify my learning curve about this new home. I have very dark, very wise eyes that help me to stare deeply at them. When they become aware that I’m doing this we share special moments of soulful reassurance that I am truly home and that all is well.

They took Bonbon and me to the Oregon coast once since I came here and I had a wonderful time. We are going to go there and stay all night sometime soon. Daddy took a trip to the beach in a private plane this year. A friend from work was the pilot, and, WOW, they flew right over a whale jumping out of the ocean! Mommy had a four-day quick road trip in to Reno in June. She stayed with a childhood friend who was having a surprise 80^th birthday party for her mother. Mommy loved being a part of the surprise, and she had a wonderful visit in her hometown.

A marriage happened in our “family” recently. The girl in Bangladesh, named Seuli, sponsored by my mommy and daddy since 2003, got married and moved away from her childhood village. She is only 15 and this news was a disappointment for us. I’m going to send my picture to the kids we still sponsor: Wellington, our boy in Ecuador, who is now 6, and Huwaida, our girl in Sudan, soon to turn 16.u

Daddy has joined a professional organization for accountants and will be more involved in a leadership capacity in 2008. Mommy took a fiddle workshop in the summer, got her own violin afterward, and will begin violin lessons in 2008. They are busy and happy.

We all wish you good cheer and a great new year.

Love,

Abby