To The Boy Who Saved My Life

It has only been one day since we had to say goodbye to our sweetest Mudge. I am trying to stay as positive as possible, but I still have to constantly battle tidal waves of sadness. I can’t change what happened and I can’t bring him back, but I can tell his story and our story in hopes that at least one person will read it and take a chance on a shelter pup. That’s what we did, and our lives will forever be altered by the force that was a 40 pound pit bull mix with a big ol’ fat head.

The squeaky squirrel he picked out on his birthday…and then immediately tore apart.

I have to start from the very beginning. I have always wanted to volunteer at a shelter, but my schedule was often weird, and I didn’t think I had the time to dedicate. Zach (my boyfriend) knew someone who volunteered at the Burbank Animal Shelter and set up a time for me to go there and chat with her. Of course, while I was there, I had to look at the sweet pups waiting for their forever homes. And there he was – the quietest, saddest little bub named Badger.

A before and after of our handsome boy.

He was fat and dirty and easily overlooked in the shelter, in fact, he had been there for 6 months already. For some reason, I knew I had to have him, and I knew that if I could get Zach to come to the shelter and see him it would be a shoo-in. He came, he saw, I conquered. In fact, the first time we asked to see him the kennel attendant was actually shocked that someone was interested. We took him into the yard at least four times and each time he peed on everything and hid under the bench while he chewed on a ball. He did NOT care about us being there. But, I still just felt like I had to have him, if only for the notion of giving a senior dog (he was supposedly 9ish) a home for his last few years.

Then I went through a series of, oh god what am I thinking moments; Will he pee everywhere? Will he eat the furniture? Will he kill Timmy? Will Timmy kill him?

My Experience Fostering A Dog (Or Two)

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I’ve adopted three dogs and each one has changed my life. The first helped mold me into the person I am. The second taught me not to judge a book by its cover and showed me that my capacity to love was way larger than I thought. And the third has really tested my patience and adaptability. I still love her though.

Having my own pups, and volunteering at shelters, has really made me want to bring in more animals. Of course, I don’t own my own house and two dogs that don’t like each other is a special kind of challenge. But being a dog foster has been on my bucket list for years. Which, I shared a few blogs back. You can see the whole list here.

Zach and I have actually taken in two dogs, both for short periods of time…and countless more strays that we’ve housed for a night or two. As a foster mom for a short period of time, I will say that it’s definitely a rewarding experience, but man, it can be hard.

Jonsey Bonsey

Our first real foster was a pit bull named Jones, who I like to call Jonesy Bonesy. He was about 60 pounds and a year old so he had ALL the energy. I’ve never had a big dog, so it was a little tougher than I had anticipated. But, we made it work.

He was such a cutie and so funny. I’d sit with him at night and get him to settle down. He’d just lie next to me and chew on his bone. After a week, Jones definitely thought he was mine—and I got a little attached. I mean, how could you not?

It wasn’t long until a family put in an application to adopt Bonesy. We corresponded via email so that I could get a sense of what they wanted from a pet and feel out if their lifestyle and home situation were compatible.

Then they came to my house to meet him and hung out for about an hour. I could tell they were serious and had really done research before picking a dog. They didn’t want just any dog; they wanted Jones.

That is one thing that worries me about the next time we foster, way down the road (probably when Timmy passes). That I won’t pick up on something and help place a dog in a bad environment. Thankfully that wasn’t the case with Jonesy.

He had a playdate with the family’s other pibble and they got along swimmingly. I follow them on Instagram and get to see videos of them playing and being the best of buds.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BeqvMQoH091/?hl=en&taken-by=kooky.chaplin.pb

But man, it was hard letting that guy go. And I didn’t even have him for that long, nor was he the perfect fit for me. But he relied on me to take care of him for a while and we bonded.

I can definitely see why people fail at fostering. That’s another one of my life goals though—to be a foster failure. AKA adopt the dog I am supposed to be temporarily taking care of.

A Girl Named Doodle

The other foster dog we had was an 8-pound terrier mix we named Doodle. I found her in a parking lot and somehow got her in my car. It was probably because she was very tired and I had cheese.

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This girl was covered in fleas, had worms, a huge burr on her butthole and was dirty AF. Of course she wasn’t chipped and had no collar on. So we brought her in, cleaned her up, and let her nap her face off the first night.

Neither Zach or I are small dog people, but Doodle was cool. She was super weird, which we love, and small dogs can get away with having a shit ton of energy because you can just pick them up and move them.

I posted photos and videos of the Doods on social media and had a lot of people interested in adopting her. I took her to Bradshaw Animal Shelter to get vaccinated and ultimately spayed so that she could be adopted through the facility. But since we had the space for a small dog, we were able to host her so she didn’t have to be in the shelter.

But, she didn’t last long. As soon as she was able to be adopted, Tom from the morning show swooped her up. I am still waiting for him to bring her in so that we can chill. I just hope she remembers me.

All in all, fostering an animal is hard work. It can be frustrating, it can be time consuming, and you might not bond with the animal. But it is SO worth it. If you have the space, I recommend doing it at least once.