Here is my story about Gracie, a Sheltie puppy, who came into my life in July of 2019. I wasn’t planning on getting a puppy, But I’m getting ahead of myself. There is background you need to know first to enjoy this story.
I did not get my first dog until 2004. Her name was Chloe and I’ve written several stories of her on my blog. Along the way, Fast Eddie and Chancey, came into our lives, our gang of three. Years went by and in 2017 we lost both Chloe and Chancey. I’ve missed Chancey. My grief over Chloe’s passing never stopped.
In the fall of 2017, we made some major decisions about our lives. We put our house of 13 years on the market and started looking for housing and employment in New Hampshire. Things fell into place, we sold the house, found an apartment that welcomed Fast Eddie and moved north.
The apartment is wonderful. Plenty of space, two bathrooms (a requirement for two women) great views and wonderful neighbors. The only problem is that it’s on the third floor. There is an elevator, but it’s a little distance from our apartment. Next to our door, is a staircase that goes down to the area reserved for dogs which is what we use.
Mary and I had talked about getting another dog once we move to a house. We both agreed that living in an apartment was not the best environment for two dogs, especially if one was a puppy. We agreed no additions until we moved.
In June of 2019, my grieving process over Chloe’s death intensified. I would sit looking at pictures and videos of her. Of our three dogs, we rescued two of them, Chloe and Chancey. Fast Eddie was an Internet purchase, which much as we love Eddie, we would never do again. And I was vehement about never purchasing a dog from a pet shop.
Near us is a pet shop which I had only visited once during the first year of our living in the area. Whenever they had animals for sale, they would mention it on Facebook and would post a sign outside. They only sold small-sized dogs, French Bull Dogs, Pugs, Pomeranians and Shelties. When they posted that there were puppies, I wouldn’t see the posting until days after the puppies went to their forever homes. Which didn’t matter because we weren’t getting a second dog.
This changed on July 2, 2019. I was scrolling through Facebook when I saw a posting for Sheltie puppies. The posting dropped at 1:30 p.m. which was only 15 minutes old. Interesting, but not enough to go over to see them.
I was exhausted and decided to take a nap. While I napped, I had a dream about Chloe. She let me know that she missed me as much as I was missing her. She also let me know it was time to let her go. And, it would be okay to bring another dog into my life.
I woke up around 2:45 p.m., feeling fuzzy and trying to understand what my dream meant to me. I knew I needed to go over to the pet shop to just “look” at the puppies.
I got there at 3 p.m. and one of the females had already been sold. There were two females left in the litter of six which were born on a local farm. One was black and white and the other was tri-color brown. My idea of a Sheltie was a smaller version of Lassie (a collie that had her own TV show from 1954 to 1973).
I picked up the mini-Lassie, held her upright and looked directly into her eyes. I said, “Hi Gracie.” While I was holding her, a woman came up said, “What a cutie, can I hold her?” I thought, what happens if she doesn’t give Gracie back to me? I said, “No.”
BIG PROBLEM. Mary was in Massachusetts at a client site where they were facing a 6:00 p.m. deadline and I couldn’t reach her. If I left Gracie at the shop, she could be sold before I got back. If I wanted to put a hold on her so Mary could meet her it would cost $400 and wouldn’t be refunded if we didn’t buy her. Plus, the hold was only good for 24 hours. Mary wasn’t due back until late the next day, (she would arrive around 10:00 p.m.). The following was the 4th of July and the shop was closed.
What could I do? I purchased Gracie without checking with my wife of 14 years. Her reaction? Well folks, that’s another story that you can read about next week.
Until next time…
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