I have been trying to sit down and write about our new puppy, Maggie Mae, since we found her last September, but with the continuing research of my large family tree and the downright time a new puppy takes, it has been almost impossible. So, I will start at the beginning.......
I had been thinking about getting a puppy for a year before Maggie appeared. I thought it would be a good way to keep Bob's mind busy and active with having to deal with the many needs of a dog, especially one like Maggie, and I loved the thought of having a companion dog in our lives should one of us pass away. So I started looking at the Humane Society where tons of dogs are brought every day, taken away from less than honorable people who neglect and abuse them. Bob saw a little guy named Oscar that was 4 years old, but did not do well around children or other animals. Since we have a grand-doggy in my son Nick's family, I did not think Oscar would do well here. But the likes of Oscar melted Bob's heart since he swore he did not want another dog. (It broke our hearts to lose two of our dogs many years ago and Bob could not bear it again) I continued to search here and there looking for a dog and more and more I realized I wanted a puppy. I mentioned one day to Bob that the pet store down the street might carry puppies, but I never went inside the store to look. A few weeks after I had said that, Bob came home from visiting a friend and said we should take a look in that pet shop. I was busy doing something and said maybe tomorrow, but he was adamant and insistent we go that afternoon.
So I finally relented that day, all the while thinking they would not have puppies in the store. I was still thinking more of a dog from the Humane Society, but knew the little puppies taken in from puppy mills were snatched up before anyone else could get down there to look. So to the pet store I went with Bob not feeling as though we would find our match. I walked in and could see they had cages in the back of the store. As I started down one aisle to the back, I turned to say something to Bob and he was nowhere in sight. I continued on and as soon as I cleared the aisle and got to the window where you could see all of the animals, up popped a little blond head from the top row of cages. The puppy's ears perked up and she stood up looking at me with enormous brown eyes. You might say it was love at first sight for the both of us. I asked the attendant to bring her out so we could meet in a boxed in area and see each other close up. She had blond hair with black tips, a bottom jaw that jutted out so that one could see her little teeth making her appear to be smiling, and was a tiny ball of energy. She instantly sat in my lap and smelled every inch of me. I was looking for Bob to come in the back to see what he thought of this little ball of fluff, but he was still missing in action. Other people in the store started coming back to see the puppy and she entertained us all as she stood on her hind legs and danced around. You would have thought she was a trained circus act, even at four months of age. I pulled myself away while other people were ooooing and awwwing over her. I turned around and there was Bob standing in one of the aisles watching us. I asked him what he thought and he was non-committal as usual. I told the clerk that we needed go home to talk about it before committing to this puppy. Bob said if I wanted her to take her because once we left we probably would not come back. He was right, but what I did not know was that he had been in the store earlier that day and had seen this very same puppy. She caught his eye, too, in the same manner as she had caught mine. He wanted me to meet her alone to see if we "clicked" and to make sure this is what we wanted. She followed us around the store as we talked about getting her and I did not see any way I could leave her there one more night.
I named her Maggie Mae, only because I liked the name and it fit her. We did bring her home that day and it has been a learning experience for us ever since. We did not know at the time that she came from a puppy mill in Kansas. She was put in a cage soon after her birth and shipped to Oregon. She had been in a cage for four months with nothing but a small bowl and rag towel to play with while she waited for someone to find her. We now know all of this, but did not know at the time how anxiety ridden she was and her unbelievable inability to know how to be a dog. Believe me, we have had to learn with her as the months ticked by and she wasn't responding or learning as well as our grand-doggie. They are the same age and it is amazing to see the difference in them. They are both small in size, but Maggie is far behind him in behavior.
We had Maggie neutered at 6 months of age. She was still learning how to be a dog and was doing better, but then she contracted a parasite that set her back a few more months. We learned the parasite could kill her if left undetected and she was one very sick dog. We had to give her round the clock care during this time which only increased her anxiety and I think ours. As she got better, we started taking her with us when we had to go out to get things so she would once again get accustomed to people and other dogs. It took us 4 months to figure out how to transport her in the car without her going crazy. I can say now she has come a long way since those first shaky months and is doing well with the car, discipline and obedience. She is still a little skittish with people and is learning how to approach other dogs. Although we did not get her from the Humane Society, she is a rescue dog in every sense of the word. Who knows how much she was manhandled or neglected and needs much work, more than I ever knew dogs needed. She wears a stress coat when we take her out because it eases her anxieties. Bob takes her on a walk every morning and when I have time, I take her for one at night. She follows Bob everywhere and prefers to curl up and sleep by him at night. She snuggles up to me in the morning and lightly paws my face when it is time to get up because I feed her.
Needless to say it has been an eye opening experience having Maggie. Once she locked those big brown eyes on us, we both knew it was meant to be. She captured my heart and I cannot imagine our lives without her. We have put a lot of time, patience and energy in her so she can have a good dogs life, the way it should be for all dogs. Today we are taking her to the Vet for her one year old checkup. It is perfect timing in a way because she became sick last night. She started throwing up around dinner time and continued into the night. She was panting heavily and we kept feeding her water through a syringe to keep her hydrated while trying to cool her with a damp towel. I had to wait a long time to retrieve a stool sample from her so the Doctor can exam it, but I finally got one this morning and took it right in for examination. She is still lethargic and not eating, but we are hoping it is not the parasite again. If it is, we will get the medicine and nurse her back to health just like we did the time before and continue to nurse her as long as needed. She is our girl, our trusted companion, our loving handful of a dog we call Maggie Mae. There is nothing better in the world than to sit down with her, seeing those little teeth smiling from that jutted jaw along with her big brown eyes that seem to say, "I got you." Yes you do Maggie Mae, you have us hook, line, and sinker. But the most important to me is.....we...have...you!
