TheBanyanTree: Lucky 7

[Margaret R. Kramer]

We’ll all be pretty tired after attending all the weddings going on today.
Will 070707 prove to be a lucky day for marriages or not?  Time will tell.

We haven’t been lucky with our rainfall.  It’s still very dry.  The pond in
our office park is getting lower and lower and the trees are beginning to
show the stress of not getting enough water.  We have a small chance of
getting some rain on Sunday and again maybe on Tuesday.  Those small chances
usually turn into zero chances.

I’ve been able to keep our lawn sort of green by dragging hoses around.  I
give my garden nice long drinks three times a week.  I try not to go
overboard with the water, however, even though we have no watering
restrictions.  I try to give my garden just enough to get by.

It’s going to be a scorcher today.  Will we be lucky enough to hit 100
degrees?  We might get close.  The predicted high is 96 with sweltering
humidity.  I turned out on air conditioner, something I really hate to do
and I try to run it very sparingly, but it keeps us sane, last night.

And will 070707 be a lucky day for me to get another dog?  For some reason,
I’ve been compelled to get another dog.  I need another dog like a hole in
the head, but I can’t shake this feeling.

There are two reasons I want another dog.  First, I don’t think Axel would
mind another dog.  He enjoys interacting with other dogs.  He’s overweight
and I’m hoping having another dog around will help him get a bit more
active.  He’s the most laid back dog in the world, a slow mover, a slug like
his owner.  I take him for walks, but because he’s a beagle and wants to
smell everything, a walk around the block with Axel seems to take HOURS.

And that’s the second reason I want another dog.  I LOVE going for walks,
but Axel is too slow for me.  He heels beautifully, but then the walk
becomes me focusing on him and I can’t focus on my surroundings.

My new dog has to tolerate other dogs obviously, cats, and children.  My
grandsons are here enough that a dog has to get along with them, too.  I don
’t want a barker.  I don’t want a wiggle worm.  I don’t want a runner.  I
want an older dog.  I want a dog who is up to date on shots.  I want a dog
who’s been altered.  So I began my search.

I searched for the perfect dog on www.petfinder.com and also
www.craigslist.com.  What size did I want?  What breed?  What price?  I don’
t have a lot of extra money, and that’s why I don’t need another dog.  But
why should a lack of money stop me?

I went to two Humane Society shelters.  Some of the dogs were ridiculously
priced, in my opinion.  There were lab cross puppies for $385.  That’s a lot
to me, since these weren’t purebreds.  I got Axel at the Humane Society.  I
think I paid $350 for him, I also paid for him to get neutered, with a small
discount from the Humane Society, he had kennel cough, so I paid for the vet
bills, and I paid for obedience training.  He was worth it, but I really
want to find another dog I don’t have to put quite so much money into.

I know the Humane Society and other animal rescue groups are trying recoup
their expenses by charging potential owners high prices and the thought is
if someone is willing to pay for an animal, then hopefully they will take
care of it and have the income to get it to the vet, etc.  But a few of the
rescue groups, including the Humane Society, it seems that the prices are so
high that they are prohibitive to a potential good owner.  I could get a dog
from a reputable breeder (and there are reputable breeders out there, not
all of them run puppy mills) for the same price or less, depending on the
breed.

I didn’t see any dogs at either shelter who jumped out at me and said, “Take
me with you.”  Part of this journey for me is to find another CoCo, my
Lassie dog, my ultimate dog, my best dog in the whole world, who I found a
few years ago at the Humane Society.  He was a rottweiler/Chesapeake Bay
retriever mix, weighed 120 pounds, and looked like a HUGE golden retriever.
He was eight years old at the time.  He was a wonderful dog and every minute
he lived with us was a joy.  Will I find another dog to go with Axel, who is
another wonderful dog?

Well, just from reading descriptions online, I narrowed my search down to
two dogs.  Both are in rescue services who foster their dogs rather than
keeping them at a shelter.  They’re both Labrador retriever mixes and
neutered older males.  I’m trying to meet with one of them, and I’m hoping
his foster people will contact me today.  And the other dog, hopefully, will
be at an adoption event at a PetSmart this morning, so I’ll be able to see
him then.

We’ll see how my luck holds out on this lucky day.  Will I be able to meet
and take home a new dog?  A wonder dog?  A Lassie dog?  Stay tuned.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net
margaret.kramer at polarispublications.com

The summer night is like a perfection of thought.
~Wallace Stevens