Pepper's Story

It was a sad day. . . . a REALLY sad day.  We had come to a terrible decision and one we had never thought we would ever have to make.  EVER!  Our terrier, Quigley--yes he was named after the movie-- had finally crossed the line.  He had bitten someone and it looked like it could have been serious.  He had "nipped" the kids teenage friends before but nothing serious.  THIS time we had to deal with it.  It broke our hearts.  It was the hardest thing we ever had to do, but we decided we could not have a dog that would hurt anyone.  So, even though we are the biggest dog lovers in the world, we had to take him to the shelter.  I honestly can't tell you how awful we felt.  We were failures at being "dog parents."  The fact that we had been caring for our previous dog for the last 5 years of her life by giving her injections twice daily for diabetes gave us no consolation.  WE WERE FAILURES! (Quigley was successfully adopted to an experienced home.)
 
Even though this was an awful experience, I could not keep myself off the computer and logged onto "Petfinder."  This has always been my favorite website anyway.  We are, and always have been, committed to adopting dogs from a shelter or rescue organization.  I actually have no idea why I opened up this particular rescue website.  I do think Westies are adorable but I do not live in Missouri. 
 
WELL THERE SHE WAS!!!  I just started laughing at the picture.  It was possibly the cutest dog I had ever seen!  The description said "puppy."  Hmmm. . . puppy.  Were we ready for a puppy again?  In our early 50's we just weren't sure but, what the heck, there's no harm in inquiring.  Besides, we live in Illinois and this dog was on the Missouri website.  There was a slim chance, in my mind, that this adorable dog was even still available. 
 
So, off my email went.  I didn't even tell my family about it.  It was such a long shot.  Cuties like this get adopted very quickly.  Shortly, I got the email back that yes she was still available and she was being fostered in Illinois.  I was VERY surprised.  Now I was to fill out the adoption application, which I did right away.  I was still not too confident that this could happen.  There must be hundreds of people putting in applications for this little sweetie.  I was cautiously optimistic as I filled it out.  I typed of the recent unfortunate events with our last dog.   I actually figured that information would put us out of the running, but I had to be honest.
 
We hadn't found out too much information about this puppy, other than her name was Libby and she had been abandoned somewhere in the southern part of the state.  So, I decided to inquire, after a few days passed, if our family was still in consideration for adoption.  I emailed Angie (we had been emailing back and forth for a while) and she let me know right away that we were not only being considered, but we were #1 on the list!  I could hardly contain my excitement!  I felt like we had won the lottery!  We made plans to drive 1 1/2 hours and pick her up immediately from her wonderful foster home.  By that evening we were home with Libby!  How exciting!  We loved her from the 1st minute we saw her!  Sooo cute--fluffy with her white chest and 4 white feet. 
 
My children (22 and 19) fell in love with her too and they are so happy she is here.  She is ALWAYS the center of attention and I will tell you--she gets so much exercise running after her toys that most nights she just falls into her bed.  She started out about 5 lbs but now, at almost 6 mos, she weighs about 7 1/2 lbs.  She has a small body and a small head but her legs are very long.  We think she looks like a monkey when she puts her paws up on the window or door.   Her new thing is that she has begun to "talk."  She will sit up on your lap and face you for a long time and when you talk to her, she will make these noises back like she is trying to tell you something.  She also is chasing her tail which is a new one to us--we never had a dog do this!
 
By the way. . . I forgot to tell you that her new name is Pepper.  We decided to choose a new name for her--not that there was anything wrong with Libby.  She was also "Stormy" for a very brief period.  BUT, Pepper seems to suit her.  She is really the best puppy.  I think she acts like a much older dog.  She will jump on you and want you to throw her toy or pet her but then after a while she will just lay down or chew on toys on the floor all by herself.  Oh yea, she gets a tiny piece of food, brings it into the living room and tosses it.  She chases it and tosses it again.  All by herself.  It is the cutest thing to watch!  Dogs are such a joy!  Our world would not be such a wonderful place with the beloved "Man's Best Friend."
 
Thank you to everyone at the Westie Rescue of Missouri--Angie, Linda, Janie etc.  You are angels to devote such a large part of your lives to these wonderful animals.  You are to be commended on your strict guidelines for adoption.  The welfare of these animals is your #1 priority as it should be.  You bring joy to lives both human and canine!   

Happy Pepper and the Happy Dooley Family!!

Pepper's 1st Christmas 2005