I lost my friend’s dog this week.
Not just any dog. Madeline is a Champion Toy Fox Terrier. She’s less than a year old and already boasts many fancy ribbons and has her own blog.
And I’m not just any pet sitter. I have my own dogs, who I adore and show in conformation and obedience dog shows as well. One of my dogs is a therapy dog and visits sick children at the local children’s hospital. If anyone can appreciate the love a good dog, it’s me.
I went over to my friend’s house while she was out of town to feed little Maddie and let her out to potty. When I opened the back door, she darted outside like she meant to chase something. And I guess she did. Because in a matter of seconds, she was gone.
Fence? What fence? It appeared as though she jumped over it!
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At first, I was in disbelief. She couldn’t be gone. Not GONE, GONE. I am the world’s most responsible dog owner. My tagline as an author is Romancing the pet lover’s soul, for goodness sake.
This was not happening!
But it was. For four excruciating hours, I had no idea where Madeline was. I ransacked the backyard, my stilettos sinking in the mud. I traipsed all over the neighborhood calling her name and shaking a box of doggy biscuits. I had finally given up searching and was making fliers to post all over the area when my friend called and told me Maddie had been found.
Someone found her crouching under a parked car and took her to the vet. They scanned her microchip and – viola – everything was OK.
Thank heavens she had been microchipped. Most show dogs don’t wear collars. Maddie doesn’t. My own don’t. It can leave a permanent dent in their coat. Of course, my older dog is microchipped, but my newest puppy doesn’t have a chip yet. Bliss is her name. She’s a 5-month old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and is – this is, of course a totally objective opinion – the cutest thing on earth.
Today we had a big dog show in Hutto, Texas. My friend was there with Madeline and had a wonderful time. She’s not upset with me at all. Technically I didn’t do anything wrong. The tiny dog somehow escaped out of the yard. That, however, was little consolation while she was missing. It didn’t matter if I did everything right if the poor dog never came home.
But she was there today and did marvelously. She won an enormous ribbon (called a rosette in dog show lingo). I joked with her that Bliss had rosette-envy. Then, five minutes later, Bliss won Best In Show in the special puppy show. She has her own giant ribbon. It was truly a great day.
And Monday morning, she’s getting microchipped!
Teri’s newest book, Cup of Joe (White Rose Publishing) features an adorable Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Almost as adorable as Bliss! For more about Teri, visit her website at www.teriwilson.net
Lots of news and updates tomorrow. Please come by.
