Dogwinks, page 16
“Oh, you poor baby,” says Theresa, kneeling down to stroke Muff. Anger rises up within her as a sickening feeling crosses her stomach. Pressing her lips tightly together, she whispers, “How could they do this to you!”
After snapping the chain with a wire cutter, Theresa wraps Muff in a horse blanket, then gently carries her back to the truck, driving out of Choctaw. “How could they do that to you,” Theresa repeats in a sweet tone to Muff… belying the seething anger that she is feeling raging inside.
A little more than a mile away, Amy and the toddlers are now in their new home, getting ready for Daddy to join them for their first dinner there.
For the next couple of years, whenever Amy finds herself shopping at the bigger stores in the Midwest City area, she takes the time to drive through their old neighborhood, looking for a lost Dalmatian—or two. She always says a little prayer for Muff and Harley, and sadly drives on.
Two Years After the Tornadoes
Theresa and her helpers at RockySpot Rescue nurture Muff back to health and once again she is ready to be considered for adoption.
An active couple with no children is fully checked out and approved to adopt Muff. Theresa reiterates the characteristics of Dalmatians so they’ll know what to expect.
They are thrilled. They can’t wait to take her home. Unfortunately, the honeymoon lasts only six months. There is a major family crisis and the couple ask Theresa if they can return Muff.
Each time Muff is rejected, her depression gets a little deeper. Muff had really gotten to like that couple. And while it’s nice to be with Theresa again, she still misses the people who took good care of her.
Three Years After the Tornadoes
Amy and John’s daughters, Emerson and Preslee, at three and a half, are inquisitive little girls and love the family’s two dogs. Yet one of their favorite movies is 101 Dalmatians, and they frequently ask their mom to tell the story about the brown-spotted Dalmatians she used to have.
“The mommy Dalmatian was Harley, and her daughter, the puppy, was named Muff. And why was that?” The girls would make the gesture, the way Amy had taught them to, of putting on earmuffs. “Earmuffs!” they would gaily say together.
Amy likes keeping the legend of Harley and Muff alive for her children, but she also never fails to say a silent prayer that the dogs have survived.
Theresa places Muff with a third home, that of a sweet older couple, who are fully checked out and approved. They convince Theresa that the energy level of a Dalmatian will not be too much for them. To prove it, they frequently send photos of playful times on their nicely manicured lawn.
Muff likes the friendly man and lady and expresses her excitement for her new home by jumping and running all through the house. She is certain they’ll appreciate that.
The couple sadly phones Theresa, admitting that Muff indeed has much more energy than they’d expected. Could she take her back?
One more time Theresa nurses Muff out of a state of depression, then at the appropriate time, reopens a search for a suitable home.
Three and a Half Years After the Tornadoes
The fourth home, carefully vetted by Theresa, is a family with three loving, active children, who appear to be a good match for Muff’s activity level. Their home is located in a small town with an abundant yard.
Now more cautious than ever, Theresa stops by unexpectedly whenever she’s driving down the interstate. She has other volunteers doing the same. She is pleased with what she’s seen until one day, talking with the owner, she’s told that Muff had been shot by a neighbor.
“What?!”
Muff loved running in the big space of her new home, and one day, she bounded through a faulty gate, right onto the property next door. Uh-oh. That neighbor shouted in a mean voice. He didn’t like dogs. Told her to git. But Muff decided to show him how friendly she was by running real fast through his yard.
BAM!
Ow. It hurt terribly. Something struck her backside. She went down. After a few minutes of being stunned, and just lying on the ground, she managed to crawl back toward the gate. She lay there in a collapsed state until one of the kids found her. They quickly called their parents, who ran out to see what happened. The nice veterinarian came, gave her a shot, and fixed her up. She was bandaged for several days.
Theresa grills the adoptive family. They nonchalantly say they had the bullet removed. And promise to install a proper gate to prevent Muff from reoffending the neighbor.
Theresa makes it a point to phone the family, or stop by, at least once a month, always voicing concerns about the neighbor. She reminds them that she’s willing to take Muff back, any time they feel they can’t keep her safe.
Unexpectedly, Theresa receives that call a short while later. One of the older kids brought home a second dog: a pit bull.
Muff sniffs the air. Another dog! Oh no! Another dog is right here in my house! The dog growls at her. Then, he suddenly attacks her, biting her leg, causing her to bleed!
The owner yells at the mean dog, and shoos him away. But, every successive day, Muff is greeted by a snarling dog that often attacks her ferociously. She is wounded almost every time.
Then… Thank goodness! Theresa’s here!
Theresa takes the call from the owner and comes right away. Recognizing that Muff is wounded by bites, she places her on the front seat of her truck, and talks to her, petting her, all the way back to RockySpot.
Six Years After the Tornadoes
Although Muff is once again nursed back to good health, her spirits are persistently low. She demonstrates no enthusiasm. Theresa worries that the pup’s episodes of rejection are just too much for her.
After the last adoptive family allowed Muff to be mistreated, Theresa tells her staff that she has drawn the line. “No more. I’m never going to let this sweet dog be punished anymore.”
It was nice to be back at Theresa’s ranch, but Muff just doesn’t feel up to running with the other dogs. Theresa has so many Dalmatians, they stretch as far as the eye can see when all sixty of them line up near the wire fence, excitedly trying to see who is coming down the long driveway.
As she lies in the pasture with butterflies fluttering all around, she remembers the good times. If she strains her memory, she can re-create mind-movies of wonderful days long ago when she romped and played tag with her mom, Harley. And she loves holding on to the image of those little babies that smelled and tasted so good… like vanilla cookies… when she licked their hands.
After several months of observing Muff’s depression, one of Theresa’s volunteers treads on sensitive territory. She asks if a family with nice children, giving Muff a good home, might be just the thing to get her out of her doldrums. The young volunteer braces herself for Theresa’s protective response. She knows Muff is special to Theresa.
Instead Theresa is pensive. Maybe I’m being overprotective, she muses. “We’ll think about it,” she tells the young woman.
RockySpot Rescue now has an exemplary reputation, earning the respect of animal agencies and rescue services in the Oklahoma City area. RockySpot is among the first rescues to be invited to show their pups at adoption shows.
PetSmart is holding a big one for Easter weekend. With trepidation, after agonizing over the decision for days, Theresa reluctantly says it will be okay for Muff’s picture to be included among the dogs that’ll be offered.
Amy and John have no hope of sleeping in on Sunday morning. Not this week. It’s Easter Sunday—the girls know it’s a special day, and they excitedly want to know what the Easter Bunny might have brought them. They pull at their mom and dad to get up and take part in all the fun. After the girls tear through the house looking for hidden baskets with chocolate bunnies and yellow marshmallow chicks, Amy gathers everyone for breakfast. The girls are darling photo ops as they sit at the table wearing bunny ears clipped to their heads.
The phone rings. It’s Amy’s mom, Donna.
“Amy, guess what?” she asks her daughter.
“What, Mom?”
“Allison made a discovery,” says Donna breathlessly. She’s referring to Amy’s youngest sister, who was visiting her parents.
“She said she wanted to look for a dog of her own, so she went online, looking at all the pups being offered for adoption this weekend at PetSmart.”
Amy nods, wondering where her mother is going with this story.
“Well, here’s the Godwink. I happened to walk through the room just as Allison had the picture of a dog on the computer screen. I froze!” exclaims Donna. “Amy… I swear… she was looking at Muff!”
“What?!” says Amy, bolting to her feet. “How do you know, Mom?”
“Amy, google ‘PetSmart’s Easter Adoption, Midwest City,’ and take a look for yourself. You and I know those earmuff-like markings on that dog!”
Amy darts from the kitchen to her computer in the family room. John, curious about what is going on, follows her. The girls continue watching a TV program in the kitchen.
“What’s going on?” asks John, seeing her quickly type something into the computer.
Speaking so the girls won’t hear, she whispers, “Mom says there’s a photo… of Muff… up for adoption.”
“No way! I don’t believe it. That dog couldn’t have survived that tornado. I bet your mom only thinks she saw Muff.”
Amy is now pulling up the site and scrolling through photos of dogs up for adoption. There she is! A photo of an older Dalmatian with the uniquely spotted ears that identified Muff.
Amy looks at John. “Can that be her?”
John shakes his head, twisting his mouth. “Maybe it’s just another Dalmatian with the same markings.” Then, addressing a different thought: “Amy, we don’t have room for another dog.”
“But look at her, John… that could be Muff. Humor me. Let’s go see.”
“Well… that dog does look like Muff.”
They agree to just tell the girls they are going to do some shopping in Midwest City and get food for the dogs.
When they get to the store, the plan is for John to take the girls to look at other pets while Amy tries to find the rescue booth named in the screenshot printed out from the computer.
At RockySpot Rescue’s booth, she holds up the dog’s picture to a volunteer.
“Sorry, that dog’s not available,” says the lady.
“I think this is my dog,” begins Amy, showing the woman a photo of Muff as a puppy.
The RockySpot volunteer appears doubtful and protective.
“We lost her in the May third tornado, six years ago…” continues Amy.
“The tornado?” the lady says. Amy now has the woman’s attention. She again looks at the photo. “Well… it could be her. But this dog was not sent up here with us today. I don’t know any more than that.”
“Could you call? Could we visit them?”
The volunteer is soon on the phone explaining the situation. The person on the other end is apparently hesitant, then consents. The volunteer then gives Amy the name of Theresa Monnard, and the directions to get to RockySpot, the Dalmatian rescue, forty-five minutes away in Newcastle, Oklahoma.
Theresa wasn’t expecting a call like that. After six years, someone shows up saying they are Muff’s owners? She’s doubtful. What are the odds of that? she thinks skeptically. Besides, earlier that morning, she’d already made her firm decision. She’d been up half the night with second thoughts about allowing Muff to be again considered for adoption. At the last minute she resolved that she was going to stick to her guns—and the promise she made to Muff—not to put her through another adoption process. She’d decided to pull her out of the candidates they were sending up to the dog adoption at PetSmart. Nope… that sweet dog has simply been through too much for any creature to have to endure.
Now she is dreading that these people are heading to her farm. She doesn’t really want to hear some made-up sob story from well-intentioned people, like so many in the past. She vows to turn them away as soon as possible.
As John turns the car onto a long dirt road from the main road to the farmhouse, Emerson and Preslee in the back seat begin shouting with excitement. All they can see are Dalmatians! They think they have been transported to the Disney studios… and maybe they’re in the midst of making another movie!
Muff lies listlessly a short distance back from the fence as the other dogs start making a fuss over the approaching car.
Expecting the visitors, Theresa steps out on the farmhouse porch, looking pensively at the car approaching in a cloud of dust as it slowly moves along the dirt drive.
Muff has been through too much! In her mind, Theresa repeats the statement she had made to the volunteers that morning as they were leaving for the adoption show. I promised I would protect her and never let anyone hurt her again.
The car pulls up. Amy gets out and walks up to the porch as John and the girls remain in the car.
“Hi, I’m Amy Collins. I called you… I think the Dalmatian you’ve offered for adoption may be our dog.”
“Why do you think that?” asks Theresa almost curtly.
“Well, I have these photos of her as a puppy, taken just before the May third tornado.”
Theresa looks at the photos. She shrugs. “This is a puppy. I don’t know if that’s her. She had no microchip when I picked her up after the storm. And, honestly… this dog has been through so much…”
In the car, Emerson and Preslee are beside themselves, wanting to get out to see the dogs, to be with their mother. “Daddy, can’t we get out now?” asks Emerson. “Please, please, Daddy?” adds Preslee.
“We just need to wait till Mommy finishes talking to that lady,” he replies.
“What are they talking about?” Emerson wants to know. “Is Mommy getting us a puppy, Daddy?” Preslee asks.
Theresa is laying out her rationale. “This dog was mistreated by horrible conditions after the storm. One couple chained her to a stake and left her to starve to death; in another situation she was shot by an angry neighbor and then allowed to be attacked by a pit bull. I love this dog. I don’t want anything to happen to her, ever again.”
Amy can feel Theresa’s passion. She wasn’t expecting this reception. This is clearly a woman who loves the dog and has her best interests in mind. As Theresa talks about what had happened, Amy realizes that if it is Muff, the dog spent much more time with Theresa over the last six years than with her; after all, she only had Muff for a year and a half.
“Perhaps you’re right,” says Amy hesitantly. “If this is our dog, perhaps she’s better off staying here, where she’s so well taken care of.” She takes a step to leave.
“Girls, settle down,” says John, trying to calm his daughters’ unbridled enthusiasm.
“It smells like a farm here, Daddy!” says Emerson, who discovered that the back window is not on the usual child-lock position. She pokes her head out the window. Preslee joins her. The two of them are gleefully looking at all the dogs now barking back at them from the long fence.
Muff continues to lie on the ground while all the other dogs display curiosity. Then… sniff… she smells it! She lifts her head, turns toward the visitors, and smells it stronger. It’s the vanilla cookie smell! The smell of her babies!
Muff leaps to her feet, dashing to the fence. At the gate she uncharacteristically begins crying, howling, and jumping crazily, trying to climb the fence!
“I’m so sorry your dog had to go through so much,” says Amy, stepping down from the porch toward the car. “And… well… six years is a long time.”
Theresa pauses, looking directly at Amy, appreciating her candor. Suddenly, she is drawn to the commotion at the gate. It’s Muff, jumping out of her skin, trying to get everyone’s attention. “Wha… what’s going on?” says Theresa, looking more closely.
Amy looks at the Dalmatian that appears to want to do backflips. “Muff, is that you?” says Amy.
Theresa’s countenance suddenly brightens. “Oh, my goodness. You called her Muff! You know her and she knows you! She’s got your scent,” says Theresa, waving for Amy to follow her.
Theresa pulls the gate open and Muff bolts… not to Amy or Theresa… but toward the two six-year-olds! Their dad is just letting them out.
Muff races toward them! She jumps excitedly, almost knocking them over.
It’s them, it’s them, thinks Muff, inhaling that sweet smell from years before. The babies would be older now… but that’s them. For sure!
Now Muff recognizes Amy. She dances with joy, jumping up, running around her in circles, and barking happily.
Amy looks at Theresa. There is a pause as, mother to mother, their hearts speak through their eyes.
“That’s your dog. For sure,” says Theresa, struggling to hold back tears. “Go. We’ll handle the paperwork later.”
Amy reaches out, touches Theresa’s arm, and says, “We’ll take very good care of her. Promise.” She walks to the car, opens the door, and turns to take one look back. She mouths the words Thank you.
Moments later, struggling with her emotions, Theresa feels a tear trickle down her cheek as she gazes at the back of the car slowly leaving her farm. The faces of two delighted six-year-olds hugging Muff, from either side, are looking back at her from the rear window of the departing car.
Later…
Muff couldn’t be happier. She sits patiently on the floor of the family room as the girls fuss over her. She is the guest of honor at their “Easter afternoon tea party.” Muff can’t tell what is happening, but she knows something is on her head while something else covers her back.
