My 'doption story, as told by meez, Hazel

So, my new “mom” has been saying lots of stuff about me lately, so I thought it was time that I give you my pit of view of how I came to be ‘dopted.. A little over a year ago I found myself inside a scary place that I have heard peoples refer to as “the pound”. I didn’t know what was happening or what I did to get there. All I knew was that I was all alone inside a cage on a hard, cold concrete floor, with no human contact. People would walk by my cage and look inside, but just as quickly as they approached, they left. One time, a little boy who smelled like cookies came up to my cage. Just as I was about to give him a lick, his mom pulled him away and said in a mean voice, “that is a pit bull-stay away!!!”. I looked around to see what they were so afraid of, cuz geez, maybe I should be scared, but nothing was behind me. I heard that word “pit bull” many times after that and still don’t know what it means. I only saw dogs around me.

After a few weeks of being inside what I came to know as doggy jail, I started to feel sick. I knew what that meant for me. I saw the dog next door to me get taken into what others know as “the room”..the place where doggies go in, but they don’t come out, and I’m not talking about being ‘dopted. One day, a lady with a kind face stopped by my cage. She talked to me and called me “pretty girl”. Pretty?? Me??? She took a picture of me and touched my face the best she could in between the bars. I gave her some kisses but then like all the others, she walked away. I walked to the back of my cage and tried to get comfortable, but it was no use. The concrete was so hard and cold. Then I heard a voice. A kind voice. “hey pretty girl, do you want to get out of here?” I wagged my tail with all my might hoping she would know that I meant “YES!!!!!”. She leashed me up and I pulled her down the hall before she could change her mind. Before I knew it, I saw the sky, I smelled fresh air, and felt the earth beneath my paws. FREEDOM!! After a car ride, I was taken to a girl who I was told was responsible for me being what they call, “rescued”. She saw a picture of me on something called the “e-list”, and asked the lady who took the picture of me to get me outta that place. I came to love this lady and her dogs that lived with her. For the first time, I had a nice warm bed, yummy food, and I could even sleep on the couch!I loved her very much but she explained that this was not my “furever” home. I was her “foster dog”. Nice volunteers would take me hiking and to ‘doption events to meet families. I saw some of my doggy friends find new homes and they were so happy. I was happy for them and I knew my day would come. Some day. Until then, I had a nice place to stay.

Then, the day came…my foster mom told me that I was going to a new home. I would stay with them to make sure it was a “good match”, and then I would be adopted! I was very happy! I had been waiting for many months for a new home, and my time had come! I moved into my new home and everything was great. I liked my new doggy brother and I had a new bed. My new people said they would be my mom and dad. A mom and dad?? Wow, was I lucky!! After I had been in my new home for awhile, I noticed my toys being packed up and my special food was being carried out of the house. “Why would they take my stuff?” I wondered. Well, I found out why. My stuff wasn’t staying because I was not staying. My “new home” was not my furever home after all. I don’t know what I did to make them change my mind. It didn’t matter though, once again, I was in a car heading to someplace new.

The next several weeks are a blur..filled with vet appointments, spending time with new volunteers, and trying to figure out where I belonged in this big world. One day, my foster mommy took me on a walk all by myself. This wasn’t normal,..my foster siblings were left at home. I could tell something was different but I didn’t know what. We walked in the grasses and there I saw a little girl with long hairs, and her mama. They were both smiling at me and spoke softly. I wagged my tail very hard and gave the little girl kisses. This time, the mama didn’t pull her child away from me…she seemed happy that I was giving kisses, so I gave more, and then more, and even more!! The mama’s eyes started leaking and she came over to pet me as well. I got lots of lovins for awhile while she talked to my foster mama. Then, just like that, the leaky eyed woman and her girl started walking away from me..just like everyone else. They kept looking back at me and the little girl looked sad. I tried to pull to get inside their car but it was no use. They drove away. Oh well, off I went back inside to my foster home. Maybe I was just meant to be a foster dog forever.

One week later, that leaky eyed lady came back to my house. This time, she came inside and something weird happened. She started taking MY stuff out of my house! “Hey, what are you doing with my crate?!” I wanted to shout..but then, something happened. She came back. Not only did she come back, she leashed me up and took me to her car. This time, I got to jump inside!! I didn’t know where we were going, and I didn’t care..meez loves car rides! Soon we were at a new house. She took me inside, and there in front of me was the little girl who loved my kisses! I gave her lots of kisses again and she made a high pitched squeaky noise. Someone needs to tell her that it hurts doggy ears! They took me outside and there was a big grassy area that I immediately started running free in. I pounced on balls as they laughed and laughed. They kept saying how “precious” I was, and how “perfect” I was. All I could do was smile. This felt good. I wondered if this was what they called “a family”. I had a mom, a dad, and a human sister. I had never had one of those before. I spent lots of time with this family, and we had ups and downs. I never spent much time with those little humans, so excuse me, but I didn’t know it wasn’t cool to pounce on them, or take their arms in my mouth. That’s how I played with my doggy friends, geez, what’s the big deal??! Well, I could tell it was kind of a big deal. One day, I made the little one cry really hard, and for the first time, I saw her being afraid of me. This confused me. I could tell the mama and dad were concerned and not happy with me. They wondered how they could keep the little human safe and me happy at the same time. I had seen that look before..I knew they would probably start taking my stuff out of the house again. I was used to it. Dang. I was liking the feeling of having a family. The mama came over to me and looked into my eyes. She was saying words that I didn’t understand until she said one I DID understand. They were what’s called “training words”. At first I got scared but then she gave me something delicious and then I heard the word again. This made me happy,and me being happy made the mama happy. She used a clicky thingy and every time I heard that click, I got something deeelicous to eat. I couldn’t please her fast enough! This is all she wanted me to do?? Why didn’t she say so?! Then my mama came to me again…she looked deep into my eyes and in front of her girl and the daddy, she said, “we are not giving up on you. We will make this work. We all have to work hard, but we will do whatever it takes. Hazel, you are home and we are your family. And family is forever.” Something changed almost overnight on my insides. I felt different. I felt safe. For the first time in forever, I knew my stuff was here to stay.

The thing is, my mama told me that I probably had more “luggage” that is yet to be unpacked. I don’t know what she’s talking about, because I have everything I need here. Whatever it is, she said she would help me unpack it, no matter how much I brought with me. Well, that’s enough talkins for me today, but I’ll be back! For now, there is a big comfy couch with lots of pillows calling my name. Peace out doggy dog friends! Love, Hazel