The Story of Me!

This is the story of me, my name is Shadow and I’m a dog. What kind of a dog, you ask? Picture it, a Stafford Terrier, mixed with a Dachshund and Golden Retriever, at least that’s what the DNA test said. But my owner just calls me a USDA (Urban Street Dog of America). That is rather fitting because I came from the street, and now live the life of luxury.

My owner worked for animal control, I don’t know her real name, but I know she’s a girl because she smells like a girl. I like all girls, and I bark and growl at the opposite, the guys. There are some guys I like, like my owner’s dad, and her brother-in-law, but they are family. When I see a guy I don’t know, I’m very cautious. When I see a girl I don’t know, I’m fine with it and I want to meet her.

Anyway, my owner, I’ll call her (Shannon) because that’s what I hear everyone calls her. I’ve come to like Shannon and appreciate how she smells. Well you see, Shannon found me at her animal control job. Let me tell you about it.

As you probably know, animal control is the evil organization that rounds up and “kills” all the animals in the world. At least that is what everybody thinks, but I’ve been around them for a couple of years and I can tell you that most animal control officers do like animals. Shannon does, and I can smell the happy on her. And getting caught by animal control was the best thing that ever happened to me.

Anyway, Shannon received a call for a stray dog in a park, (catching a dog in a park is hard.) She drove to the call and searched around until she spotted me. Did I mention that I had been running around for a couple of hours on my own, peeing on things and smelling the ground. I also had a chain and lock around my neck, and not a dog chain, an actual chain that was weighing me down. I was running around and Shannon spotted me on a street behind the park. She was by herself and I watched her get out of her truck and kneel down on the ground. She called to me, and I looked at her. I didn’t trust her, and I barked at her. I started to run away from her. I watched her for a few minutes. Shannon got back in her truck and followed me into the park. The park is huge, and there is a lot of open space, I wasn’t going to get caught in the park. Shannon followed me in her truck and we went around in circles for a while, in the park, on the street, and then I went behind a container. Shannon came up behind the container, and tried to get me there, but I just ran out the other side.

“Ha, Ha, Ha!” I wasn’t going to get caught, Shannon followed me for what seemed like forever (actually she later said it was only about 40 minutes) and just watched me run in circles. I still had plenty of time to pee on things, and sniff things. All of sudden, another animal control person showed up. This one was older than Shannon and was a guy, and he did not smell good. He started to come after me and I got scared. I ran out of the park and onto the street behind, but I got confused in all the excitement and ran up a residential street. I was trying to go back in the park but I got turned around. Next thing I knew, Shannon was in front of me and this other animal control guy was in back of me. I was trapped, what was I to do? I thought, maybe I could try and run past one of them. I looked at Shannon and the guy and I barked, I could warn them off, and then I could run away.

I ran towards Shannon, and she lunged at me with a net, but I got by. I outsmarted her, I “won”! at least that’s what I thought. I kept running and headed out toward the street. But by now I was long way from the park and headed in the wrong direction from the park. I turned the corner and ran down another residential street. Then I again realized that Shannon was in front of me and the guy was behind me. REALLY!!!!! I just got out of this mess. I decided this time to run back toward the park, which I was familiar with, and I ran towards the animal control guy. I thought I could get by him. He lunged at me with the net, and WHAP!!!!! I felt the net come down on me.

The net was dark, and darkness encompassed my body and my head. I was really scared now. I freaked out. I started to bite the net, I pooped in the net and I let go of my stinky glands near my butt. The guy came over to me, but I was determined to bite him. I also saw Shannon running towards me, but she wasn’t quite as scary as the guy. The guy picked me up, while I was in the net and put me in a cage in a truck. The cage stunk, it smelled like dogs, cats, and other things, and I could also smell death. I didn’t like it at all; I started to shake and now I was really scared. As I sat in the cage I felt a rolling motion. I also heard an air-conditioner, and it blew on me. I rode in the cage for a while, and then the cage stopped moving. I heard some noises outside the cage and then the door opened. Shannon was standing there looking at me. I looked at her, she smelled good. She opened the cage door and held out her hand. I sniffed it and then waged my tail. I felt her pet me and then felt her lift me up. She took me out of the cage and put me on the ground. Then she took the chain and lock off of my neck. Relief, at last! My neck had hurt so much during the past couple of months. Shannon rubbed and ran her fingers around a circular scar that was cut into my neck. It felt soooooo good. I shook my whole body, and looked around; I was near a building and some trucks. Shannon picked me up and placed me in a bigger cage. I had room to move around, there were water and food, and some blankets. It was great. I sat in the big cage for a while, all day over night until the next day. Shannon came in the next day, and walked me and petted me and cleaned the cage. I was so happy, and she smelled so good I wasn’t afraid of her anymore. I saw the animal control guy a few times over a couple of days, but he didn’t come out and play with me, or even talk to me.

A couple of days later I got put in the small cage on the truck. I was taken some place else, it took a while to get there and once I did, I was transferred to yet another large cage. But this one was not as nice or warm as the one that Shannon first put me in. This one was in a big building with a lot of big cages, and a lot of dogs. They all barked at me as I was processed and put in one of these cages. Shannon left me there; she walked out of the building and disappeared. I was scared; I liked her, but now I was here, alone. I got sad, and lay down on the blankets and slept but Shannon never showed up. Over the next few days, a few different people looked at me. I tried my best to be happy, and waged my tail, but no one took me out or played with me. I started to not feel good. I was sneezing and coughing and this green stuff was coming out of my nose. I was sick, and I was feeling fat and tired. I didn’t care much anymore I wasn’t scared, I was just sick. Oh, and did I mention that I was pregnant. I didn’t know how to tell anyone but I knew I was carrying 5 babies.

After two weeks I got really depressed, and I couldn’t shake the cold. I was sneezing and coughing all the time and I was feeling like this was it, I was going to die! Then one afternoon I saw Shannon. I barked for her and waged my tail. She came over to me and stuck her fingers in the cage. I was so happy to see her. Some other person came over to my cage and they were talking about me. Shannon stayed with me, while the other person left and then came back a few minutes later. After a few minutes, Shannon left again.

She came back, the next day and unlocked the cage and picked me up. She had some papers in her hand. She hugged me and put me in the small cage in the truck and took me somewhere.

That day, I got adopted and not by just anyone, but by the person who I barked at and ran away from at first. Shannon took me to her home, which was a giant kennel. She washed me and fed me and let me sleep right next to her in a bed. I loved the way she smelled, and I loved my new life. I promise I will never run away from Shannon again.

About a month later, I was returned to the shelter for surgery, and when Shannon picked me up that day, the 5 babies were gone and I felt a lot better. I went home with Shannon and I’ve never looked back. I love her and will never leave her.