Are we the only ones?
July 15th, 2009
My friend, Yoshimi posted today about a woman that would marry a man if that man got rid of his dog. For me that would be saying something like – I’ll marry you, just get a new face.
When Karen and I adopted Ruby, we were surprised by some of the questions on the adoption form. One that I remember was – What will you do with your pet if you move somewhere that doesn’t allow dogs? I’m sorry, but that’s like asking what would I do with my child if I moved somewhere that doesn’t allow children.
My wife, Karen, is walking for the 4th year in the 2 day, 40 mile Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. Help her reach her goal of $3,000 and support the fight against breast cancer. Make a secure online donation 
As a rescuer, I once thought it was probably not all that helpful to have people provide references. After all, they’re all going to say good things, right? Nope. More than once I’ve discovered things about people that their references think nothing of telling me…animals they’ve euthanized because they were moving…astonishment that the party would want to adopt another dog after what happened to the last one ???…animals hit by car, but not disclosed on the application…conflicting statements by references and adopters. I’ve even had references tell me they wouldn’t recommend adopting to the person in question because they’re irresponsible or because they don’t really take care of their pets. But, really the best way I learn things about people is to let them talk. They tell me things that they think are fine, but are definite red flags or dealbreakers for me. There are many people who think nothing of “getting rid of” their animals at the slightest inconvenience. If people were responsible, we’d have no need for shelters or rescues. That’s the problem — people. I’ve had my pets through changing jobs, through unemployment, through moving to different states, through living in houses, apartments, even a military post. Sure, sometimes the pets visited with friends or relatives for a couple of weeks so they wouldn’t have to endure the boxes, movers, etc., but they always come back home with me. After all, we’re family.