Flying Miss Daisy

Ann Handley's post about Georgie, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel she fostered and nursed back to life, reminded me how much I'd like to foster a dog someday - specifically raise and train one in a seeing eye dog program - but I haven't done it because I don't think I have the ability to not get attached. It's the same thing that keeps me away from volunteering at the SPCA or some other animal shelter, I just think I'd want to bring home every one of those dogs. I mean, I came home with a dog after casually walking by an adopt-a-pet years ago in a strip mall. To raise, care for and love a dog, and then give it away...not sure I can do it.

Then I remembered that I have dipped my feet into the 'I'm going to help a dog and manage not to take it home with me' water.

A few years ago I went to Dallas to visit my friend Candace who has a friend who's active with an organization called Best Friends and rescues all sorts of dogs and cats and finds them new homes. As it turned out, she'd recently rescued a Potcake (if I remember correctly, a stray she found while vacationing in the Bahamas) and had found a new home for the dog in the San Francisco Bay Area. Within two minutes of landing in Dallas I was asked if I'd take a dog back with me to it's new family. It didn't take me two minutes to say yes.

When I met Daisy I loved her instantly and was convinced I would have taken her home myself if someone hadn't already called dibs. But I was strong, loaded her into a carrier, took her onto the plane and brought her to meet her new family...these nice people:

So maybe there's hope for me. I guess I can dip my feet into the water without falling in.

Comments

[Larissa Gaston]

I had no idea - when I get that dog (someday) maybe I'll make you my Kleenex supplier. You know I'll be crying buckets the day I have to give him/her away.

[Christie Lee]

Yet another 'magnet on the fridge' tie. I have ALWAYS, ever since I can remember even being able to think, wanted to train and raise guide dogs, but I can never bring myself to do it because of the attachment issue. I've even filled out applications, sent them in, and been called... only to say that I didn't think I could handle letting the dog go after a year. I still think that I might do it one day, but in the meantime, you could fill in for both of us!