On Saturday, April 2nd I received a call from Robert around noon that he was making great time and was
already just on the other side of Indianapolis.
I would be getting Lucky Florida Dog #4 today! Robert called me again from Merrillville,
Indiana and we decided on our meeting point.
As I waited for Robert to arrive I fondly remembered the last 3 Lucky
Florida Dogs. They each have very
special forever homes now and we hear from their families often with updates.
The dog that came up last year has been renamed Danilo. I am fortunate to be able to see this pup
quite often as he was adopted by Leaving Tracks volunteers and he frequently
shows his charm at our Meet and Greets.
I had called him “Mr. Perfect” because he was such an angel on the ride
back to Chicago. However, once he realized he was home and not going anywhere
else, he quickly showed his real 2 year old energy and has given his mom and
dad a run for their money …. in a loving
way :)
Once Robert arrived we
quickly moved Hasel into my car after a quick stretch. It was a cold day, lightly snowing off and on
all day and this little girl was not used to this weather. Robert had said it was 90 degrees when he had
left Florida the day before. We stopped for a bath at a self-wash Petco on the
way home which surprisingly did not phase Hasel. An hour after switching vehicles we were at
my house. I let each of my 6 greys out
one at a time to meet our new house guest.
Our little Banana seemed most interested and quickly decided she had a
new play buddy.
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Hasel at the kennel in Florida prior to her journey to Chicago! |
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Car ride! |
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Oh how tired I am! (Hasel in the car) |
Our trip inside took a
while as Hasel was not so thrilled with the steps. Banana and Penelope flew up and down them
several times telling her to do what they were doing but she wasn’t having any
of it and decided that if she looked the opposite direction then this terrible
event would not really be happening. Finally we got inside and my kids showed
her where everything was. She was not
bothered by the hard wood floors, the tile floor or the furniture. She was and
continues to be quite enamored with herself in any reflection. She will stand in front of our dishwasher,
wine cooler or floor length mirror and just gaze lovingly. It is quite cute. I was very pleased that
Hasel slept through the night without a hitch. More often than not we find that
the first night can understandably be a very restless night for the new pup.
New place, new sounds, new smells and minus lots of dogs. This was not the case
for Miss Hasel. She curled up in the crate and never woke up until we all did
the next morning. As she came bounding
out of the crate, I could just hear her say, “Ya! I am so happy to start a new day in this whole
new world!” and I was happy to show her the way!
-LRA
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"Finally! I am at my foster family's home!" - Hasel |