Four years ago today, I was living in Clovis, New Mexico. I was in what I thought was a decent relationship, but I wanted a little something extra. I needed more companionship because the girl I dated and I had opposite extremes for hours, so we almost never saw each other. So she and I decided to get a dog. More specifically, we wanted to get an active dog to keep us on our toes. Cue stumpy tailed blue heeler puppy, Starbuck.
She was adorable, energetic, and full of life. I loved her immediately. Her first night in the house, she was too scared to sleep in her kennel, so I stayed awake with her (I took off from work) and read a book until she fell asleep. I may have even slept next to the kennel a little myself. She was a fun puppy, despite some hiccups. And boy, did she love to play!
The only problem she had was that she had terrible anxiety when no one was home. We wanted to wait until she was a good training age before taking any action, and taking her through a class did seem to help a little. But what she was lacking when we were gone was the same reason we got her in the first place: Starbuck needed a companion. Enter Scully, the pembroke welsh corgi.
We didn't get Scully as a young puppy. The above is a pretty accurate representation of what she looked like when I got her. She was a rescue named Hepburn, but keeping with the sci-fi chicks theme, we decided that with red hair, she would be everyone's favorite red haired FBI agent, Dana Scully.
The two of them hit it off quickly, and played together often. Starbuck and Scully were a match made in Heaven. Then even slept together when they could. That year I got out of the Air Force and we packed up shop and moved to Albuquerque. That's where things changed for these two. They got free reign of the outside whenever they wanted, because I built them a dog run and a doggie door. We went on lots of hikes, and they were always good puppies when they knew it was time to go out.
Then the girl and I broke up. We agreed to live with each other for a little while longer (chiefly while I looked for a better place of employment). I was elated I got to stay with my girls. And they made sure to make me smile, regardless of the seemingly dire times.
And then I got a call: "You've been transferred to Oklahoma City!"
It's not that far from Albuquerque, but what would I do with the dogs? I couldn't afford a house on my salary at the time, and I didn't have it in my heart to split the two of them up, because those two needed each other more than either of them needed me. So I worked it out with the ex to let them stay in Albuquerque until I could get my bearings here. It was an understanding that could see me reunited with my two perfectly trained angels.
Four months ago she called me and told me she was getting married and moving, so she gave BOTH of them away. She didn't even ask me if I could come back and liberate them. She simply gave them to two separate families. While I'm sure they're both in good homes with families that love them, I felt devastated. She went behind my back and gave my puppies away to someone else. I'll never see Starbuck cross her legs like a lady again.
Or marvel at Scully's incredible butt-wings.
So I'm a sad panda on this day, the day I got my very own, very first puppy. If you have puppies or any other animal, go home, grab them tight, squeeze and love them for as long as you can stand it. Because some people might not get that chance again.
Hopefully bonus snowball pic (if the GIF works)
