Sandy Darling has the biggest, most druh-MATTICK eyes: black with gold edges. PLUS black eye liner. Anna very cute underbite. When she’s listenin’ to you, she has this earnest gaze like you’re the only pooch on the PLAH-nut.
Sandy an her humans were right at the door to welcome me an my assistant, an she came scooting up for the Wag-an-Sniff. I knew she was a rescue Of Unknown Origin, but I could tell she hadda LOTTA terrier in her. Curly wirey hair, some white, a lotta sandy color (thus the cognomen); short legs, tail curled up a liddle; ears flopped over a liddle. (Later I Googled “Terriers” an found a pickshur that looked ex-ZACK-ly like her: a Dandie Dinmont.)
“Hullo, Mr. Bonzo! I’m Sandy. These are my humans, Ann an Ray. I also have human sisters, Cora an Maylin, anna brother, Ramie. I’m SO ex-CITED you’re gonna write about me. I’m pretty much a people pooch. I had a Very Terrible Dog Experience before I got rescued, so I’m kinda WARE-eee. But I know YOU’RE Cool Kibbles. So, umm, should I start tellin’ you my story?”
“Absolutely, Miss Sandy.”
“About 6 years ago, I was living somewhere called Oklahoma, way far THAT way. (She pointed.) Then one day, poof, my famly was just gone. I hung around in the neighborhood, in case they came back, but they didn’t. A neighbor lady gave me food, but she never let me IN. She called me ‘Dawg.’
“It was Very Cold, so I’d lay on the pavement during the day, tryin’ to keep warm an, every day, this man would drive by an wave to me, which I thought was odd, cuz humans don’t usually wave to pooches.
“Then one day I got attacked by a pack of Mean Dogs. I thought I was Toast. I thought I’d been hurt real bad cuz I started feeling real tired an kinda strange. I dug out a liddle hole in the dirt next to what usta be my house, an curled up in it. Then I REE-lized – I was HAVIN’ PUPPIES! Two, grrrls anna boy. I knew if I didn’t get help soon, we were all in Big Trouble.
“Pretty soon after that, I heard the neighbor lady hollering, ‘Dawg! Dawg!’ I came runnin,’ cuz I was very hungry. An, guess what? There was The Waving Man. I rushed back to my puppies an he followed. Well, he hadda talk with the neighbor lady, an soon as he found out about my Dire Circumstances, he bundled us all into his nice, warm car. After a ride (we were mostly snoozing, happy to be warm) he placed us gently into a cozy, kinda boxy container. There was this roaring noise, which made us sleepy, so we had another lovely snooze. Then we were riding in a different car with The Man (whose name was Karl). We napped some more an, when we woke up, it wasn’t cold anymore. It was lovely an warm an everything was green an sunshiny.”
“Where were you? What happened?”
“I found out later Karl had taken us onna AIR-plane, an then inna car all the way to his frens who lived here, in FLORI-duh. He found us a place to stay till my babies were old enough to be adopted. I got to play with ’em an teach ’em Important Puppy Stuff. When they were all adopted, a Very Kind Lady came to visit ME. She a put long rope thingy on me and took me for what she called A Walk. I was happy to be outside, but it felt weird being attached to her. I wasn’t fond of it. I wanted to run an chase squirrels an smell the new smells. But she was nice an I thought maybe she’d adopt me. But she left. Rats! I thought. Then, in a coupla days, she came BACK and took me home with her, an I really had found my Forever Famly with ANN an SWEETIE!
“Huh? Sweetie? Who’s Sweetie?”
“Ann calls Ray Sweetie, so that’s what I thought his name was.”
“That makes sense,” I said.
“At first I was kinda uh-LOOF an I kept runnin’ away. Ann didn’t think I liked her. Ackshully I liked Ann an Sweetie a lot, but I needed FREE-dum. I was usta bein’ On My Own. Then I ree-lized how Cool Kibbles it is to have a Forever Famly. I went to school at Paw Prints, an met lotsa nice humans. I didn’t like the Dog Park, an I’d growl at the other pooches. An EX-purt told Ann it was Leash Aggression. (Also probly cuzza my previous experiences.) But when Ann let me Off Leash, I felt Much Better. Now I play nicely with my Fellow Pooches.
“Finally, I got used to BOUND-rees, and now I LOVE my yard, an huntin’ squirrels, an knowin’ I’m safe an seCURE.”
“What’s you most fun thing to do?”
“That’s easy. Travelin’ with Ann an Sweetie in our Big Motorhome! (’Cept, I don’t like those swoopy things in front that swoosh the rain off.) Also boatin’ an fishin’ with Sweetie. An I have a big bag of (formerly) squeaky toys.”
“You have a Whole New Life! That’s Pawsome Dog Biscuits!”
“I KNOW! An guess what? Ann called The Nice Lady who’d taken us all in tem-puh-RARI-ly, to see if my puppies got Forever Homes. Turns out my liddle boy got adopted by a Loving Famly elsewhere, an The Nice Lady herSELF adopted my grrrls. So I ackshully get to visit ’em. Their names are Gracie an Piper.”
“Awwwwwww.”
“An guess what else? Ann’s a writer, an she wrote a WHOLE BOOK about ME. It’s called ‘Sandy’s Been Saved.’ It’s got lotsa words an pickshurs. I was her technical advisor.”
Sandy showed me the book, which was Totally Crispy Dog Biscuits. Then it was time to go. Heading home, I was thinking a lot about Sandy’s amazing rescue story, an the kind humans who made it possible.
Till next time,
The Bonz
