Today is National Love Your Pet Day. So, in honor of my pets, here’s a little story of how we met Kevin:
It was a dark and stormy— Nah, it was nippy outside. But far from dark and stormy.
January 10th
I should have been working. Instead, I decided to clean dog nose prints off the massive window in my living room. (Procrastination at its finest.)
For reference, Kalos, my first-born, is a handsome white German Shepherd. Which means his nose remains in contact with our windows unless he is eating, sleeping, or twitching predatorily at a ball.
So I’m cleaning said windows. In shorts and a sports bra. When I see this tumbleweed of brown fur roll across my lawn. Barely registering this creature as a dog, I ran outside and screamed, “HEY. COME HERE!”
And to my shock, the tumbleweed came towards me.
Neighborly etiquette tip: If there is a dog running around the neighborhood, try to trap it somewhere safe —a back yard, a front porch, etc. If the dog is not friendly or can’t be caught or you are uncomfortable doing the trapping, call animal control.
Animal control will check for tags, microchips, and will go through the proper channels to find the pet’s owner. Leaving a dog out on the street opens up the possibility of it getting hit by a car, starving, or other dangerous situations.
(Also, microchip your pets!!!!)
So, I am a daredevil. I’m open to getting a few bites to save a pup’s life. I grew up around large-breed dogs, so I’m capable of restraining them if necessary.
But that was definitely not needed.
The dog, which looked like some kind of doodle mix, came right up to me and sat against my legs as I rubbed his head. He seemed like a puppy. Only about a year old.
And he smelled…. Like DEATH.
Like, imagine the worst smell you’ve ever smelled. Yes, that’s what this dog smelled like. He wasn’t just a dog that got out of sight of his owners. He’d been out here for a long time. His fur had grown out 4-5 inches and was so matted that there were balls of fur hanging off him in patches. His hair had grown into his eyes, so he couldn’t see without flinging his head up. And some metal piece had been crush into the fur of one of his back paws.
As I led the bouncy Chewbacca creature to my backyard, he pulled the metal piece behind him. It sounded like he was pulling a tin can.
I gave him food and water and pets. (After changing into actual clothes that I didn’t mind dirtying.) There were many times I had to hold my breath because the smell was… so bad, you guys.
Animal control was contacted. They were coming to get the boy. (By this point, I’d realized he was a boy.) But every time I went inside to get out of the cold, he cried by the back door. And I didn’t want to expose him to my firstborn in case he was sick.
If I was going to sit out there, I was going to be productive. *grabs scissors*
The furball was content to sit against my legs. Slowly and carefully, I cut some of the matted fur from his head so he could see.
This boy was so precious. So precious that my little-old-lady neighbor, Miss Shirley, clutched her chest when he sat down nicely in front of her. (And Miss Shirley is the BEST little old lady! She moves my garbage cans from the road every Friday and gifted us pecans and hard candies for Christmas 🤣) (Does anyone else have a little-old-lady neighbor? I want all the little-old-lady stories 💕)
But then animal control came.
And they took the poor boy away…
January 14th
I’d been thinking about the boy for a few days, worried that he was sitting in a kennel, cold and afraid.
I called the humane society. Yes, he was still there. Yes, he had a chip. No, an owner hadn’t come forward yet. They said he would be on hold for ten more days, waiting for his owner to come, but they would keep me updated.
The very next day…
I received a call back.
All the shelters in the area were full, they said. Dangerously full.
“Would you be willing to foster the dog you found while he’s on stray hold?”
He wouldn’t be mine. But he would be warm and safe.
My hubby came home immediately and took me to the shelter to get him… And this is what we found:
Russell said, “This isn’t the same dog. They gave us the wrong dog.” 😂😂😂😂😂
(But he still had the death smell, so I knew it was the same dog.)
On they way home, Russ started pitching dog names. Karma? Dunkin? Springer? Kevin?
….. Kevin?
I hated it.
But damn if he didn’t look like a Kevin.
We agreed to just feel it out. He wasn’t ours, of course. (But we had little hope someone would come looking for him…)
After bringing him home, we introduced him to Kalos, bathed him, and set him up with his own bedroom. (We still had Kalos’ old crate.)
For the next few days, we did our best to make the new pup feel as loved as possible. He had a few accidents due to him not knowing how to ask to go outside, but he was well potty trained. He handled bathtime like a champ, but HATED getting his nails clipped. He was also very fearful that I would steal his food. He would growl if I walked too close during dinnertime.
Determined to help him gain some weight, I boiled chicken to mix into his food and gave him an extra portion for the first few days. After a week or so, he was able to play tug with a 90lb German Shepherd. His energy levels improved. His personality bloomed.
And his personality was named… Kevin. 😂
January 27th
Kevin’s adoption was finalized on January 27th.
No one came forward to claim him. He received all his shots, got neutered, and even had his first vet visit.
Our family vet did a thorough job of making sure Kevin was healthy. Poop sample. Ear checks. Vaccines. And Kevin LOVED every second.
“He’s a good find,” she told us. “I’m so glad you found each other.”
The only downside was that Russell and I had never imagined this was how we’d get another dog. We had always imagined another Shepherd or maybe a Husky or Pyranees. Something with white fur.
(FYI, most of my house is white. I have a white couch and a very clean aesthetic.)
And this is a VERY brown dog. And a… Poodle!?!? Never in a million years did we think we would get a poodle mix.
But love knows no color or breed. He’s already more family than some of my own blood.
February 14th
Kevin’s accidents have been less frequent and he no longer sleeps in his crate at night. He sleeps in bed with us. We’re able to leave him home alone with Kalos for a few hours at a time and we’re able to take them on walks together (though, neither of them are great walkers).
Kevin knows his name, is still very food-motivated, and cares more about cuddles than playing outside. I hand feed him some of his dinner to help with his resource hoarding, which is helping. He eats next to his brother now.
For Valentine’s Day, Kevin and Kalos received matching velvet collars in shades of blue. Their names were engraved into the gold buckles.
Love Your Pet today. Give them an extra treat. Throw their favorite ball. Give them all the kisses.
🐾💕🐾💕🐾
Sam