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Well, it’s been quite a week. Emails and phone calls have been flying back and forth as we prepare to get Dustin. The publisher of “The New Barker” (who’s interested in doing a story about this adoption) has arranged for us to stay at the Hotel Indigo in the Miami Lakes area. I googled it. It looks really nice. The Hotel Indigo is a dog-friendly hotel that caters to those who want a more exclusive experience for themselves and their pets. When the hotel heard about us adopting Dustin, they wanted very much that we should stay with them. And so we are.

I wonder what poor Dustin is making of all of this. He’s spent eight years in a kennel being passed over. Now he’s the center of a whirlwind. I know that he went to the vet yesterday to get checked out and brought up to date on all his shots. And Kathy, the Director of Pet Pal Rescue in Miami, said they will bathe him in time for our arrival. I have no doubt he knows something is up. But how can he know that it’s a positive thing? I can only hope that with time and love he’ll come to enjoy the attention.

Speaking of which, I spent over an hour at the local pet store picking things out for Dustin. It’s amazing how a large dog bed sticking up out of your shopping cart inspires everyone to talk to you. One woman smiled broadly at me in the aisle and said: “My, that looks like a comfortable bed.” Another dog owner explained the best way to clean the bed — “a little Febreeze on the inner pillow makes it smell fresh inside and out.” And one employee was not only happy to hear the entire story, she was even happier to us all about her dogs.

Someone once said that: “the outside of a dog is good for the inside of a man.” I’m starting to believe that.

I have always found it interesting how fast life changes. If you had asked me a week ago if I had any plans to adopt a dog I would have said: “Huh? What makes you ask that?” Cause not only did I not have any plans to adopt a dog. I had no thoughts of adopting a dog. And aside from a friend who thinks no household is complete without a dog, I’ve had no discussions about adopting a dog.

Guess what? I’m adopting a dog.

And not just any dog. Dustin is a 10 year-old German Shepard / Collie mix whom I haven’t even met. That’s right, I’ve only seen pictures of him. Wait, it gets better. I’m in the Tampa area of Florida. This dog that I’m adopting, the one I’ve never met, he’s in Miami. That’s a five-hour drive. I’m driving five hours to adopt a senior-aged dog that I’ve never met.

Why? Cause he needs a home. Cause Dustin was found at age two wandering in the woods and has lived in a kennel ever since (8 years). Because he’s so shy and retiring that nobody even looks at him any more. Because at age ten he’s a senior dog and people want puppies. Because when the call went out for help they attached pictures and in the picture was a dog with a sweet face and deep brown eyes that seemed resigned to looking at life through the bars of his kennel. And no dog should ever be resigned to that fate.

Dustin

Ok, I’m a soft touch. I admit it. Any animal that’s ever met me has figured that out. But I wasn’t looking to adopt a dog. I did anticipate that one day Richard (the friend who believes everyone should have a dog) would eventually break down my resistance and find me a dog that I couldn’t turn away. I just didn’t think that day would be this past Friday.

So here’s how it happened. There I was, minding my own business, when an email appeared asking for help placing Dustin. I get those from time to time. The Internet, despite what some people think, can be used for more than just porn. Sometimes it can be used to do so some good. The email had come from Richard, and it had been forwarded to him by his friend Marilyn, who had gotten it from a shelter volunteer by the name of Kathy. It was about Dustin and Kathy was asking for help placing him.

I knew I shouldn’t have looked at the photos. I knew that could be a killer. But I figured what harm could it do? I had to know what the dog looked like if I were to spread the word that he needed a home. Besides, Richard had sent the email out to about 20 of his friends and I could only assume Marilyn and Kathy had done the same. There was a ton of people who were going to be looking for a home for this dog. So I was safe, right?

I emailed Catherine at work: “What do you think about getting a dog?”

Not surprisingly she wanted to know what I was talking about. I told her. I then forwarded her the original email telling Dustin’s story but left the photos out. Catherine grew up with a Shepard mix and Dustin looked a lot like her dog. It would be unfair to play that card on her. She wrote back: “Send the photos.”

I did. Then I contacted Richard to ask for more information. There was a phone number for Kathy in the email but the area code wasn’t local. Where was Dustin located?

Richard was thrilled that I was interested but admitted not knowing any more than I did. But not to worry, he would find out more and get back to me. While I was waiting to hear from him, Catherine responded to the email that had the photos. Her only comment was: “Contact Richard.” Well, at least she wasn’t going to be angry that I HAD contacted Richard. I then realized that I had an email address for Kathy. So I emailed her that I wanted to know more about Dustin. I was interested.

Within twenty minutes of my email to Richard, he gets back to me that he wasn’t able to get any extra information. His friend Marilyn didn’t know any more than he did and he tried calling the phone number on the email but no one answered. He left a message asking Kathy to contact either one of us. But he was able to figure out that Dustin wasn’t local, he’s in Miami. (Oh well, I’d been meaning to see that city.)

Then I got an email from Kathy. She was thrilled that I was interested. She told me that Dustin is a great dog: healthy, smart, and housebroken. His only drawback is that he isn’t a bubbly, happy, dog. He’s shy and reserved and takes time to warm up to people. Also, there was somebody already looking at Dustin. But that person wasn’t sure if they wanted him cause he was so restrained. That person did plan to make a decision by Sunday and Kathy would be happy to let me know what that decision was.

I wrote back that I’d wait and that I wasn’t bothered by the fact that Dustin wasn’t a bubbly dog. I’d accept him if he stayed quiet and shy and enjoy him if he came out of his shell. I told her that I honestly felt that after eight years in a kennel, having never had a home, it only made sense that Dustin wasn’t about to get excited when someone came into his life. Cause up to now, nobody ever stayed in his life. He never got adopted. He never went home. I completely understood that it would take time for him to warm up to me (if he ever did). Cause it would take time for him to realize that his life had changed and that he now had a home. I was willing to give him that time.

Well, as you can guess, Sunday came and that other person decided not to take Dustin. Kathy emailed to ask if I was still interested. Yes, I said, I’m still interested. What do we do next?

Well, it’s been a flurry of emails. Word went out that Dustin was getting adopted. That network of people who had read his story, and who were now deeply interested in his fate, was now hearing that I was adopting him. I got congratulatory emails from people I didn’t even know. A dog magazine has expressed an interest in doing an article on this adoption — and on all the other adoptions Kathy has made happen for senior dogs. Richard and his partner Byron have graciously offered to come along when we go to adopt Dustin. They plan to take photos and I secretly suspect Richard wants to make this adoption go as easily as possible. He’s determined that I should get a dog.

So now I’m shopping for doggie treats, doggie beds, and doggie toys. A week ago I wasn’t even using the word: doggie. Funny how fast things change.

We go to pick Dustin up this weekend. Stay tuned as the adventure continues.