I had been volunteering at the local humane society for a couple years. As much as I wanted a dog, I knew I couldn't have one in the living situation I was in, and I had stayed away from the internal struggle of trying to find a way to take one home with me.

March 4, 2014 - the day I broke my streak. A couple of days earlier I had been walking through rows and rows of kennels to find a particular pet when you caught my eye. Your adorable, stubby legs, your long ears, and your crazy curly doggy mullet made me melt. I turned and started to talk to you and you jumped up on the door of the kennel and cried for wanting me to let you out. Your cries got even louder as I walked away.

I spent the next couple of days thinking about you. After a lot of tough contemplation and planning, I was set up to move so that I could adopt you. I called the humane society to ask about you. They told me you were not yet up for adoption because you were being treated for an eye ulcer. Since I worked with the veterinary staff there, they agreed to let me take you home and treat you myself.

I'll always wonder how you ended up there. Did you run away? Did someone dump you? You had been there a couple of months by the time I saw you. The staff told me that you were picked up as a stray and were never claimed. You were 7 years old, friendly with other pets, knew "Sit" and "Stay," although they warned me you might need a refresher course on house training, having spent so long in a kennel. How could anyone give you up? How could anyone not come looking for you?

The shelter staff let you into the room so I could meet you for the first time. You were so happy that you couldn't stop wiggling, which I now know is just your nature. You used your super sniffing skills to find a tennis ball hiding in the room behind a filing cabinet. Your favorite! I signed the papers and you were officially mine! It was the moment I made a promise to you to always take care of you and never let you down as someone else had.

We had so many good times figuring out our new life together! Potty training didn't take all that long either. I was gaining your trust each day and getting to see your sassy, happy, and very silly personality. I'll never forget how one of my roommates had been joking when he told me he was going to teach you to dance. Treat in his hand, he told you just one time, "Dance!" Our jaws dropped to the floor as you jumped around in a full circle. You already knew!

Don't get me wrong, it hasn't always been smooth sailing. At your first vet visit, you snooped around the exam room, opening cupboards with your nose as the vet explained that you needed a dental and an intense surgery to remove tumors. Although I'm a broke college student, I saved up. You had 6 tumors and 3 entire mammary glands removed! I spent the next few weeks giving you medications and cleaning and re-bandaging your large, painful incision. I was so relieved to know you would be okay.

My money, time and effort taking care of you are all small prices to pay for your love and companionship. There were times that I wondered if I could do this - it was a rough couple of years. I was in the middle of a strenuous college curriculum and working far more hours than recommended. We left an unsafe living situation and had to move several times. Your extreme separation anxiety caused you to continuously destroy (and make me repair) a wall in a house I wasn't even allowed to have you in. But, when the landlord came unannounced and saw you there, I couldn't get rid of you; I moved on a whim to a place with higher rent than I was okay with just so I could keep you. Now we're all settled in and I couldn't ask for a more well- behaved dog. Through thick and thin, friends help each other out, and true friends we are.

You have such a pure and sweet soul. Everywhere we go people fall in love with you. When I'm happy, you're happy. Remember the time I was jumping around the apartment because I was overjoyed to get a good grade on that Organic Chemistry test? What about the day I got my acceptance letter to veterinary school? You had no idea what was going on, but you joined right in jumping, howling, and spinning in circles with me. You're the perfect ambassador of, "don't shop, adopt!"

It hasn't all been easy, but it's been worth it. I can honestly say that I don't believe I would be where I am today without you. So, thank you for helping me through dark times when others couldn't be there. Thank you for always being ecstatic to see me walk through the door whether its been 30 seconds or 8 hours.Thank you for bringing me toys so we can play and making me laugh with your random sassy howls when the room is too quiet. Thank you for reminding me everyday why I love my career. Thank you for showing me that there is always something to be happy about, and to never to take life too seriously.

Most of all, thank you for reminding me that I am always loved.

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