Baxter, one of the loves of my life. For a couple of years I went over to the local animal shelter almost every day to help socialize pups and help get them adopted. Baxter was a good-natured pup but, along with his sister, had always been an outside dog. His sister was quieter and less energetic, so she was adopted after a couple of days. Baxter was more of a handful, so it took a little longer.
As I said, he was good-natured, and he was also extremely food oriented. So it was fairly easy to teach him to sit and lie down, and to walk reasonably well on a leash. One day when I was bringing him back to the shelter after a walk the animal control person was feeding all of the pups. Food! So Baxter started pulling on the leash, trying to race to his food. But after a couple of steps I would stop him and say, “Sit.” He would sit, but as soon as I let him continue he would try to race again. So, another “Sit.” I’m sure he thought he would never get to eat, but we eventually made it, and we went into his kennel so he could start scarfing down his food. His leash was still on, so I reached over his bowl to unhook it so I could leave. He stopped eating and gave me the most pathetic look,
You’re not going to make me stop eating, are you?
How could you not fall in love with a pup like that?
Once he was socialized, our group, Friends of the Shelter, advertised in the Albuquerque Journal for an adopter. A woman in South Albuquerque (a two-hour drive) thought he would be an ideal companion for her pup. The woman who drove him down invited me to come along. When we went into the house Baxter was quiet and in awe. He looked around, taking it all in, and at one point he stood on his hind legs to look at what was on the counter. The woman went over and gently but firmly told him no, so he got down and continued looking. He clearly felt at home there and it was a great match. That was about 20 years ago, and it’s still one of the highlights of my life.
July 7, 2024
