For the love of a dog Part 1

      I would never have thought when my husband brought home a little 9 week old pup that he would steal my heart and be used by God a powerful way to teach me valuable lessons on life and on God's love for me. I usually have difficulty remembering the little details about a day from years ago, but not that day. It was mid-morning on a beautiful day in June when Rick (my husband) walked in the back door with him. I knew he was bringing him home that day, but I wasn't particularly excited about getting another dog. I was still having a difficult time dealing with the everyday tasks of life without my youngest child Timothy. You see he died 19 months earlier. Rick walked in carrying a puppy that was so dirty I immediately put him in the kitchen sink to bath him. He was so scared; his little body shook with fear. I could see the distress in his dark brown eyes; he wasn't afraid of the bath he was afraid of us! He didn't try to get out of the sink, he didn't struggle to get away from the water, and he was totally submissive yet anxious. Out of that now filthy water came the cutest little mutt, he was a short haired white dog with a black spot over each eye and both of his ears were black, he also had one large black spot on his backside. His legs were short and he had a rather large chest for a little puppy; like a Basset Hound. Later we found out that he was part Blue tick, Basset Hound and Spaniel.  I had made an appointment to take him to a Veterinarian on the day he arrived because Rick knew the place he had come from and that his mother wasn't a family dog from someone's home, but was born in a barn and the mother had been left to fend on her own.

Watching him wander around in the back yard I pondered what to name him. He was obviously a nervous, frightened little pup. Unsure of us, he was weary and insecure. Although he did seem to feel more comfortable when he was near Tela our Yellow Lab. I knew something was wrong because he'd eat, and eat, still wanting more and after walking thirty feet or so he would lie down and need to rest. He didn't want to stay near us, he wasn't happy and excited like most puppies. He never wagged his tail. We discussed what to name him, nothing seemed to fit. So I decided to name him after my favorite coffee, Maxwell House.

 While waiting at the veterinarians that afternoon he curled up shaking and shivering so much that his hair was falling out. They took his temperature, listened to his heart and prepared the shots for him while we waited to see the doctor. When the doctor walked in he introduced himself as Dr. Murphy and shook my hand, then proceeded to examine Maxwell. This turned out to be easier said than done because Max kept trying to get away from him. All this little puppy wanted to do was find a place to hide, like he wanted the world to go away. There was no aggression but it was obvious that Maxwell was terrified. Dr. Murphy started asking me questions about where he came from, did I have any back ground about the conditions he came from. He was examining Maxwell and continuing to ask me questions, many I couldn't answer. When he was done and had administered the vaccines, he explained that Max had worms that was why he was always hungry and would tire easily, then proceeded to give me medicine for the worms, explaining carefully what we needed to do to protect Tela (our Yellow Lab) and keep Max from reinfection. That's when he turned to me and cautiously begun to explain to me that Maxwell was never socialized with people. That in all probability he wasn't treated well by people, (it wasn't until later we found out that Max and the whole litter were ignored, yelled at, and were reserved to the barn where their mother had to kill small animals and forage for food to feed herself and her young). Then with a deep breath the doctor tactfully explained to me that some dogs like Max never overcome their fear and can become aggressive and won't respond to human affection and make a good family dog. His advice was to love, love, and love him. So with his advice I took him home and there began our journey. A little frightened dog and myself frightened of life and all the pain that I associated with it. I will continue this story in the up and coming weeks…