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| A Sweet Cairn, lucky to have a Guardian Angel |
The harness is
on and snug; The ID tag with contact number is secure; The leash is clipped and
securely in hand; The gate is shut
before the door is opened; Every hazard is safely out of reach; You always
take the extra step to keep your little dog safe and secure… But, do you know for sure what will happen to your dog if, God forbid, something
happened to you?
Just this
past week, a Col. Potter Foster Mom wrote about how she was called in to rescue
a 7 year old Cairn and her 10 year old Scottie brother. They were well loved pets, but their Mom had
suddenly been taken from them and her family simply didn’t want the dogs, so
they were going to be put to sleep.
Beautiful,
lovely dogs, but they would be dead without the quick intervention of friends
and the unreserved willingness of a wonderful CP volunteer to take them
in. In this case, it worked out like it
was pre-ordained, the pieces falling into place as though they were guided by
some gentle, all-knowing being…
You see, days
before, this Volunteer had learned that one of her first Foster Cairns had
passed away, breaking the heart of his fantastic adoptive Mom. The moment Foster Mom met her, she knew,
absolutely, that this homeless 7 year old Cairn was a perfect match for the
woman who had just lost her best friend.
She opened her broken heart and adopted the Cairn and the Scottie,
filling her house with love again in the most wonderful way!
Not all
stories have a happy ending. There are
no guarantees that there will be someone to reach out to a Rescue group or a
known rescue volunteer, especially if you have let your little dog have the
Alpha role in your home.
Look beside
you and think ahead! Write a will and include specific provisions
for your pets, creating a Pet Trust and/or a stand alone Pet Protection
Agreement.
Put a notice on the fridge or other obvious place, clearly summarizing
your instructions. Put a plan in place to
ensure that your precious dog will not end up in a mass grave if something
unthinkable happens to you.
Equally
important, you must be sure to assert your Alpha status in the home and you must
correct any inappropriate behavior in real time, establishing better, more
acceptable patterns. Do not assume that
your family will step up and take care of your treasured little dog if the dog
in question has questionable social skills.
You can learn and so can your dog - It is never too late to get your
Alpha on! Do this for your dog, and you
will both benefit enormously!
So, look
beside you and think ahead! Don’t take a
chance that your dog will end up with a one-way ticket to the shelter because
you didn’t prepare him or her for life without you.
Such a very important message. Those who work with rescues see this happen more often than it should. Please share this with your family, friends and neighbors!
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