My New Old Shabby Dog

I've always been a dog-lover.

I can remember sitting with my arms wrapped around the family Irish setter when I was feeling blue. Stroking Edie's silky ears always made me feel better.

I have a soft spot for "forgotten" pets. I'm the girl who climbed over the guard rail at the I-95 exit to rescue an abandoned kitten. Wearing a dress and heels.

So when I heard barking in the church parking lot after Bible study two weeks ago, I had to investigate. The girls and I found a small crowd of people huddled around a tiny little ball of fur.

Someone had driven into the church parking lot, tied a little black Pomeranian to a parking lot sign, and left.

The church groundskeeper is somewhat of a curmudgeon, and refused to let me call T to see if we could bring the dog home. He told me, "You don't need to mess with this dog. It's old." Then he hopped in his car and drove off to the SPCA.

Never one to appreciate being told what I do and do not need, I told T the whole story and he begrudingly made a trip to the SPCA on his way home to inquire about the dog.

That was two weeks ago, and to make a long story short, we finalized the adoption yesterday afternoon.

She is my unconventional Mother's Day gift. T rather liked the idea of not having to go out and shop for me this year.

This is Penelope. We call her Penny. (forgive the poor lighting...we haven't seen sunlight in forever)

I have a thing for the character, Penelope, from Homer's The Odyssey. (And maybe I'm a bit of a LOST-aholic as well.)

Penny is around 12 years old. She mostly seems to want to sleep in her bed, but I could tell she was looking for love by the way she nudged her little nose into my hand while I drove home yesterday.

Penny prefers Emma's bed over the (identical) one we bought for her, but Emma is willing to share if it means she gets a taste of Penny's canned chicken (we're trying to wean her off of what has apparently been a long-standing diet of "people food.")

I bet some of you are shaking your heads and wondering, "What is this girl thinking, adopting an old shabby dog like that?"

I can only reply that it broke my heart to think of that poor tiny pup living the rest of her days shut up in a cage, listening to the echo of barking in the SPCA's hallways. I don't know how much time she'll have with us, but I think she deserves a warm bed and a little love.

You might think she's shabby, but I think she's shabby chic.