Searching for the perfect pet is a little like falling in love.  Scratch that--it is falling in love.  We were absolutely smitten with this beautiful, oafish animal that smashed our toes with his huge feet and licked our faces.  Bruiser did not know us from Adam.  We made the effort to establish a relationship of trust with this animal.  It shined through in his reactions with every single visit.

Choosing to adopt a pet from an animal shelter requires a study in patience. Potential adoptive families wait during holding periods, wait for an interview and wait for approval.  This waiting grates on the nerves of everyone involved.  Regulations require in-home visits, documentation of existing pets and an initial visit to the shelter's veterinarian for a checkup and possible spaying surgery.  All this makes perfect sense for the health and well being of an animal.  Knocking out this volume of work in a short amount of time doesn't always happen.

Bruiser spent Labor Day alone since the shelter was closed to visitors. We spent the day in agony. Many of us personify our pets and I did the same with Bruiser.  I wondered if he thought we were never coming back.  I worried that he wasn't being walked (and using his preferred outside toilet).  It's agony waiting for something so important.  Couple that with the sense of uneasiness we felt every time we visited the shelter.  Waiting required every ounce of self-control and patience.  The lot of us tried to distract ourselves as much as possible.  Coping took the form of finding the perfect collar and leash for this adorable dog.  University of Maryland logo gear--only the best!

I moved out of the immediate picture due to a death in the family and a frantic trip to Texas (from Maryland) for a funeral.  My mom and uncle took over the twice-daily visits with Bruiser the day after Labor Day.  The next 2 days of waiting seemed endless, especially when met with the attitude of the handlers at the shelter.  Some were great, some not so.  To the person, every employee within the administrative part of the shelter was pleasant and helpful.  I do wonder how much of this was due to interference by the rescue organization.

On Bruiser's 7th day at the shelter, my mother got a call to schedule the in-home visit.  My parents have adopted many pets from the shelter over the years.  One in-home visit prompted a comment, "When I die, I want to come back as a dog in this house."  Good home, good family, happy life.  It should be simple.  The in-home visit is the most dangerous time for a potential adoptive family.  In my opinion, let me make that perfectly clear, the whole shebang rides on the shoulders of the visiting shelter representative. Tick them off and the deal is off.

The shelter rep wanted to schedule the visit for Friday of that week.  My mom broke down in hysterics.  No one else was visiting the dog.  We were the only potential adoptive family because of the intervention of the rescue organization.  The stress of this for a recovering cancer patient was simply too much.  She called me in Texas, crying.  She didn't ask for more help but I decided to call in the troops again.

My head spun at the quick response.  Bruiser was coming home!  Some technicalities, like removing my Mom's name from the list of adoptive pet parents to allow release to the rescue organization, had to be worked out.  Bruiser was sprung from his prison at the behest of the rescue organization by 3 o'clock that very afternoon.  Whirlwind - there's no other word for it.  It took less that 5 minutes to put on his collar, sign a paper and walk out the door!

There's more to this story but you'll just have to patient to see the final chapter.  For all of you considering adopting an animal, visit your local animal shelter.  Hopefully, the experience won't be rife with the difficulties we faced.  I encourage everyone looking for a pet to do what's best for you.  If you can handle the animal shelter, go for it.  If you can't, seek out local rescue organizations for purebreds, mutts and all types of furry and feathered friends.  Including chickens.  An untold number of beautiful animals need homes and can be rescued from the shelter or privately funded rescue groups.  Don't buy a pet anymore.  There's one already waiting for you to provide that forever home.

Check out www.petfinder.com to find rescue animals near you.  I adopted an orange tabby cat after finding him on this site.  O'Malley found his forever home with us after being rescued by the wonderful folks at a rescue organization.  These fabulous people give their time and hearts to hundreds of animals each year in the hopes of placing them with loving families.  Without these folks, Bruiser wouldn't be ours.  Of that, I'm absolutely certain.

Read the rest of Bruiser's story...

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3