11/17/2024
"GRANNY"
Today: My old girl can't wait for her daily walk in our lil' patch of Wellesley woods! The town's parks dept people cleared the pond/waterway of leaves last week, with efficiency and care. No napping in their municipal trucks outside the Table Talk facility on Southgate Street a la City of Worcester workers! Such serious care here! In one pic below you can see the two ducks (or geese?) paddling around in their pristine pond. My Lilac🐾💕 is watching them and then following her nose (she's got hound in her) all over the leaf-crunchy earthy beneath her paws. My 10+ year old mutt has been through a lot with me: she deserves to enjoy her golden years! Oh a-ramblin' we will go, my dear Lilac!
🍂🌽🎄✝️🎅A holiday message: ALL SENIOR dogs🐾 deserve the simple pleasures, especially at the end of their too too brief sojourns with us! Last week I was praying for "Granny," a 12- to 14- year-old arthritic, milky eyed, overweight pittie mix waiting to be adopted in the Manchester, Connecticut, animal shelter. Granny had been with the wonderful ACO of the Manchester Police Department for awhile, and she was spoiled by the young, blond-haired, cheerful ACO who was clearly crazy about the personality-plus Granny! And who, deep down, felt sorry for this old dog who, like all dogs in animal shelters, was tentative, a bit afraid and ... sad. The ACO posted recently on her dept's FB page that Granny, grey and white, hoary all along the snout and barrel-bodied, was in the town shelter for FOUR months! Could someone even foster her, the animal control officer wanted to know? I visited the Manchester CT ACO FB page daily and watched as the much younger, healthier dogs were scooped up by their (hopefully) forever families and good dog-moms and -dads. But there was Granny. Still alone! But still hopeful! I could see her strong spirit in those weak eyes! So every morning I checked out the FB page to see if someone, just like the ACO, had fallen in love with Granny and had adopted her.
While under the care of the good, young Manchester ACO, Granny was given the royal treatment: she had her own quiet kennel with cozy bed. During the day she was out of the kennel and napping in her own special warm sunlit room. But something was missing. HOME!!❤️
Every day, like hundreds of people from all over Southern New England, I checked out the Manchester Animal Control page for a Granny-update. Was Granny ok? Were her spirits flagging? Was she getting enough walks? Was she enjoying the fall weather? Yes! Someone had volunteered to pay for a complete doggy dental! Now Granny just had that one long yellow canine jutting out in the front of her mouth. You mostly saw her soft gums now! Last month she was the star of a CT Adoption Event; the Manchester ACO dressed Granny up in pretty pink scarf and THREE STRANDS OF PEARLS - to make Granny more desirable to potential adopters! Though I believe she was pretty cute already. But the ACO went all out! Three strands of big, fake, golf-ball-sized "pearls" hung from Granny's old neck. Granny wore them so good-naturedly as she galloped about in the big grassy field! She was so happy to be out and about - she wanted to gambol! I cried as I watched the video of sassy, sweet Granny trotting along briskly, then slowing down after a few seconds to a walk punctuated by that arthritic hitch in her gait that I had come to know so well with watching all her Granny videos. Also, her heavy breathing, more than heavy panting - but still right there with her ACO human buddy! Struggling to walk/run to her ACO!
A few days ago the Manchester ACO dressed up Granny in a winter wardrobe: doggy puffy jacket! with hood! trimmed with fake fur! and, of course, her signature strands of mega-pearls. Thanksgiving and Christmas were approaching. The good animal control officer wrote on her FB that she was pleading for people to share Granny's FB pics and videos so Granny could be home for Christmas! Or...Can anyone foster dear Granny?
I thought: YES! I WILL! MONDAY I'LL GO TO THE DIRECTOR'S OFFICE HERE, SHOW THE DIRECTOR THE GRANNY PICS AND VIDEOS ... and melt his heart. This was just too much for me, many folks, to bear! And just two weeks before Thanksgiving Day!! But yesterday I visited the Manchester Animal Control page and saw THE BEST FB POST OF THE YEAR: GRANNY HAD BEEN ADOPTED!!!!!
YES!!!!!
Granny had been adopted by a senior lady and was moving to her forever home - the perfect home for Granny - on the shore! Granny's new mom looked old, like Granny, heavy-set, like Granny, grey in all the cute places, just like Granny and looked very stylish in her red sweatshirt and sneakers, just like Granny in her pearls! She, too, like Granny, seemed to have grit and spirit! And there was Granny, right beside her, smiling a loose, happy doggy smile. She was no longer wearing her strands of pearls or pink scarves or other frippery - just a no-nonsense doggy harness (gentler than dog collars). The harness lead led to a rugged looking senior woman, short grey hair, tote bag, real smile - Granny's new owner. The senior, like her dog, seemed happy! I know I was! I hope she took home Granny's pearls, too! To put them away in their own special little jewelry box, a keepsake... So she could occasionally take them out to look at, run thru her (most likely) arthritic fingers ... to remember the special day she was KNOWINGLY big-hearted and opened her door to Granny. Gave an old dog a HOME!
- Rose🌹🐾❤️
