My
boyfriend Michael and I have been together for about three years now,
and about a year into our relationship, we started talking about
getting a dog. We both grew up with at least one pet in the house, so
we knew how much love and joy a furry friend would bring us, and we
were also acutely aware of the financial concerns as well as the amount
of time and energy spent on raising a furry baby.
I have terrible allergies, to cats, bunnies,
pollen, most dogs, water, just about everything! So it took us a while
but eventually we decided that if we were to expand our family, an
Australian Shepherd would be the perfect dog. Not too big, not too
small, extremely loyal, energetic for Michael and cuddly for me.
At first we looked at adopting, but the fact
of the matter is Aussies are not often abandoned and if they are they
don’t stay at the shelter very long. It was difficult to find any
Aussies at our local humane society, and extensive online searches
yielded no results. After a while we decided that a baby puppy would be
the best option, we wanted a Velcro dog that would have no question
about who her parents were. Eventually our online inquiries led us to
Buckingham Ranch, and Karen got in touch with us. It was fate.
Our Sadie Mae was the last of her brothers
and sisters and had I not responded to Karen when I did, we would have
never have gotten our perfect doggy. We live a six-hour drive from Fort
Myers, but that didn’t affect our determination. The first time we saw
her, we knew she was ours.
We came back to visit twice; that, along
with Karen’s scenting technique, helped Sadie completely understand
that we were hers and she was ours. The six-hour drive home was easy;
crate training was a little harder! She is our perfect dog. We start
obedience training next week, and as of 4/8/15 she is almost completely
potty and crate trained, is good about sitting, staying, and coming
when called, does very well in the car, loves people, especially kids!
And does very well with other animals!
She keeps us busy, walks runs and beach play
dates, we’re happier and healthier because of our Sadie.
With all the love in our new family going out to Buckingham Ranch
Aussies and of course Karen Redmond for helping make our family
possible,
Chelsea and Michael
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