Trip to the shelter
I went to the Charleston Animal Shelter yesterday with my coworkers, April and Sue. April’s dog died on Saturday and she was having a tough time of it. She’s like me in that way. (So is Sue.) Our animals are such a part of us that losing one can really tear us apart.
Because April travels on weekends a lot, I talked her into getting a cat. At lunch, we headed to the shelter, determined to pick out a male kitten. Instead, she ended up with a two-year-old female cat. I guess it was just destined to be. Their eyes met and that was it. The cat she chose was one heck of a saleman. I don’t know how anyone could’ve resisted. She meowed, stuck her paws through the bars, rubbed back and forth and aimed this sad-eyed look at April that I thought looked suspiciously practiced. I tell ya, she had her act down.
After choosing the cat, we made the mistake of seeing the dogs. Man, did that ever tear at my heart. Those faces. Those eyes. There was one little dog, a mutt, wearing a bandana and sitting on this pillow. She was trembling all over. I bent to talk to her and she came over and put her nose through the wires. I touched her nose while I talked to her and she watched my eyes so close. Soon, she quit trembling. There was no information on her cage so I’m hoping she was just a lost dog that’ll get claimed. She looked so sad and confused to be there.
There were so many big dogs. I love big dogs, and have a major soft spot for German shepherds. There was one skinny girl, a shepherd mix, who looked so smart. You could see her intelligence. What I wouldn’t give to have been able to take her home.
