Year of the DOG

I find it very interesting when life throws you a new challenge, with choices to make and follow through on. I had one such moment last week.

This is Freyja. She approached me on our driveway Monday, March 5th when I was starting my vehicle for work. She looked very excited and very cold (it was -24 C that morning). At first I tried to convince her to go back home, when she just sat there I realized she had no collar, not a good sign. I decided I could not leave this puppy stranded out in the cold. I took her inside while I figured out what to do.

After going from door to door with no success, I took her to the vet to see if she had an electronic chip. Turns out she did, but there was no owner registered to the tag, again not a good sign. The chip was also administered in south Edmonton so it seemed very unusual that she would be wondering around in Spruce Grove. I phoned the clinic, hoping for more information, but there was nothing else they could find on this dog. Where did she come from?

It was suggested to me to take her to a shelter where they could advertise her and give her proper care until she was claimed. Mel and I discussed the matter, if she was indeed abandoned we would take her in. Freyja ended up at the Parkland Animal Shelter in Stony Plain. I made it very clear to the people working there that if no one claims her, I wished to be the first to call when she becomes up for adoption. I even visited her once while she was in the shelter.

Ten days passed and not a peep regarding anyone coming forward. How could no one be looking for this beautiful dog? On Friday I left work early to fill out the appropriate paperwork and take her home. She is a great dog! She has already been house trained, trained commands, spayed (which made the adoption cheaper) and has a great temperament. We also received a lot of assistance from Sifu Freitag, which was a great help. (I have never owned a dog before.)

I had a choice, to selfishly go to work and hope this dog finds her way home, or take the initiative to help her out, even if it meant I would be late. This small act of kindness to an animal I didn't even know resulted in us having a new family member. We were certainly not looking for a dog, but she found us anyway and we are so excited to have her. Ironic really, as this is the year of the dog.