So we have a new family member...
not a baby (I wish). It's a puppy and she is the sweetest. Her name is Libby Lou and it was quite the process getting her. We love boxers, we had two, their names were Blue Skye and Lola Belle that we got about a year after we were first married, they were our first children and they literally went everywhere with us...even after the real kids came along...we still took those dogs everywhere. Well, they both died last year of old age (they were 11.5). We were both devastated and have had a hard time wrapping our brains around the fact that they are gone. We talked about getting another dog but thought maybe we'd like to adopt a dog this time instead of purchasing one. We also realized the chance of a boxer being available for adoption might be a tall order so neither of us made any moves towards getting another pup.
Soabout 5 or 6 weeks ago we were at our favorite ranch store in Kalispell and while JD was trying on a pair of Wranglers (which look great on him) I heard this woman calling, "Libby, Libby" and from a clothing rounder, out comes this beautiful boxer. I immediately dropped to my knees and started petting her and loving her. I told the woman I loved her dog, that I love boxers and I loved the name Libby! She said thanks but that it wasn't her dog, that she was the foster mom for this dog through PAWS...that the dog had been abused, her femur broken and that she was caring for her until it healed. Apparently the person who purchased her had intended to breed her and didn't have much patience, kicked her and broke her femur and brought her to the vet to have her put down instead of pay for the surgery. The vet requested that the owner sign her over to him, which the owner did and the vet operated on her leg and put a plate in it. A week later, the vet died on his 50th birthday while flying his own plane, tragic. I knew I had to have her...I told the kids to find their dad and Lucky immediately started running around screaming, "Daddy, daddy" I didn't even care, I just wanted JD there to see that pup right then because I knew he would love her. It didn't take JD long to come out of the dressing room with the look of, "what the heck" I knew once he made his way over to us and saw the dog that he'd understand why in response to Lucky yelling, "daddy" that he didn't hear me yelling at Luckyto be quiet! His response was just as I knew it would be, his shoulders dropped and he smiled. I told him she was up for adoption and I was going to get her. The foster mom then told us that the dog was kind of already spoken for but that we could still fill an application out just in case. I told JD he had to drive me to PAWS immediately! So, off we went. I went right into the office and explained that whoever was adopting this dog was off the list because our family needed her and it was definitely meant to be. After all...we were very familiar and in love with breed, it was an adoption and not a purchase, her name was Libby Lou, hello...we live in Libby and our daughters middle name is Lou. What more proof did they need that this dog was meant to be in our family? Apparently a somewhat lengthy application. So, I completed the app, told them that I'd be talking to them very soon. Before I left they made sure to tell me that the dog already had a home and they just had to wait for her leg to heal before she could go to her new home. I was discouraged but not down! I went away, for the time being! I gave them 10 full days of no Kristan time and then called them, reminded them of who I was, though they didn't need the reminderr, and reminded me that they had previously told me that the dog was spoken for. I asked them a few questions about the adoption process, how they went about deciding on a family, etc. I just knew our application couldn't be beat...besides the obvious reasons listed above we have plenty of acreage for the dog to get exercise, it's 100% fenced and I stay home so the dog would never be alone. They unenthusiastically answered my questions and I told them I'd call them back. So, a week later I did just that, called them back and again, unnecessarily reminded them of who I was and told them I was checking on the status of Libby Lou the boxer. They told me nothing had changed, she was going to the same family. I confirmed that they still had my application and contact information on hand just in case something changed because things do change sometimes you know, and told them I'd talk to them in about a week. Well about 1/2 hour after I hung up they called back, apologized and told me in fact the other family wasn't going to work out because they had a "meet and greet" with the family's current dog and their dog and Libby Lou didn't get along and that if I was still interested...say no more, we'll take her! So, in a nutshell, (or I guess that's really the whole story) that is how we got Libby Lou. And just like we thought, a perfect fit. It's like Blue and Lola are still here, the commonalities of a boxer. She's 9 months and has been loved and spoiled so she has some things to learn (like not to eat the couch, the kids toys, the cell phone chargers, books, etc.) but we'll get there and she's worth a few items here and there!
So, if' you're not asleep by now, that is the story of how we got Libby Lou. By the way, I did manage to convince the people at PAWS that I'm really normal and not normally quite THAT pushy, I just knew we had to have that doggie. And like JD says, persistence pays off, after all...that's how he says he got me :)
