18
AUGUST 2014
DOGGIERESCUE.COM MAGAZINE
This is the story of a sad, sad dog who had almost given up and of a loving family who gave him a chance to have the life he deserved….
RALPHIE’S STORY By Jill Love
On a cold May day, three “cat people” headed to Monika’s Doggie Rescue to adopt a dog. One in particular, we couldn’t wait to meet – Ralphie! Described as a “well-mannered boy”, his warm smile and soulful eyes melted our hearts. However, with two adult cats at home, Missy and Ani, we were anxious to make the right choice and, although excited, fearful that if we got it wrong, we could make their lives miserable. The last thing we wanted was for the adoption to fail – we had to get it right.
We saw four dogs that day. The first was a friendly outgoing boy and we couldn’t believe he hadn’t already been snapped up. Next came Ralphie; we could hardly wait. He was carried out and we were shocked at how he looked – timid, head down and so, so sad. He wouldn’t walk more than a few steps and even then, only for a treat. There was a delay before the next dog was brought out and we sat outside Monika’s office with Ralphie on our son’s lap. Nuzzling into his arms, Ralphie was so incredibly gentle. The third dog, a ball of white fluff, was cute, confident and walked beautifully on the lead. The final dog was similar to Ralphie but with just a tad more confidence. We were torn - all four dogs were great, all four had positive qualities.
Ralphie greeting his brother Marty arriving home from school
By this time it was after 5pm, dark and only Monika and another helper remained and yet, we weren’t hurried to make a decision or to leave and come back another day. All three of us were reluctant to say a name, wary of influencing the others. We decided to count to three and each say the name of the dog we thought best suited to our family.
One, two, three… “Ralphie!” It was unanimous!
We each felt that we had the love and patience required to bring him out of his shell. When brought out that second time, Ralphie not only walked, he jumped up to greet us! Somehow he knew – this was it, Ralphie’s “gotcha day!”
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