He came into my daughter’s family’s home, asking nothing. After all, Dave the Dog was a survivor. He was a streets of Sacramento rover, taking no prisoners as he went along. Big dog? No, not at all. He’s part shepherd/part dachshund, bad ass with other animals but has a genteel soul with humans.
Dave relaxing with my husband
We babysat for Mr. Dave last weekend while his family toured Disneyland. He adjusted pretty well considering that his new family only had him for two months. I wondered what he thought when we brought him home. Though he’d been to our house once before, I hoped he didn’t think he was being shuffled off again.
It was nice having Dave, but he was a bit of work, and I was primarily responsible for him since my husband, Jim, can’t walk too much, let alone on uneven ground. So walk it was, every two hours for fifteen to thirty minutes during the day and two or three times in the night. When you carry migraines in your head almost all the time, movement can be challenging. Yet I didn’t want too many accidents in the house, and out we went – a lot.
It made me sad to see Dave always leading the way toward the street or looking for gaps in the fence lines as we walked along our junior acre yard. He followed the leash and listened well. All I’d have to do was say, “cheech” – not in honor of The Cheech from Cheech and Chong, but more like Cesar Millan’s cue word he uses to get dogs to refocus. Little Dave walked ahead, determined to explore every nook and cranny. The few times we encountered another animal, Dave stood his ground. This was his territory, albeit temporary. Walking with him while he checked out escape routes made me wonder if that was how he got to roaming the Sacramento streets. He probably got out from whatever yard or home he had. I felt extra responsible for Mr. Dave, fearful that he’d take off if he accidentally got out the door.
By the end of the four and a half days, we were ready for my daughter to pick up little Dave. He loved attention, loved begging for food, loved settling in and taking over, the way a child often does. It was priceless when Jana came through the front door to collect him. He leaped and ran with exuberant joy. He hadn’t been passed off! His people were home!
Dogs and animals have their own special spirits. Dave is a second chance rescue dog. He was brought to Portland from Sacramento. He is a sweet dog and brightens the lives of whomever comes in contact with him. Rescuing an animal is an awesome thing. An instant family was had and reformed when Dave joined Jana, Josh and his kids’ home. New memories will be made with this special little fellow. God bless Dave and all the rescue animals.
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