Translate

Sunday, February 18, 2018

The Story of Stella

It has been over a year now since Lucy is no longer with us. I've missed that little canine presence in our home. Geo thought it was too soon for another dog. We did look at a few, but none of them seemed "right" for us. I really wanted a dog, so...

I prayed for a dog for Christmas. I began watching and waiting to see if God wanted to bring another dog into our lives. It was on the last Day of Christmas, the feast of The Epiphany, that I met the little beagle. She seemed "right" for us, but was this really the right time to be bringing her into our family?

The dog rescue offered to let us foster her for awhile before we would adopt her. In the meantime, they would not advertise her to the public. So Addie and I picked up the chubby little beagle and brought her home. I thought that with the right diet and good exercise, we could get her into shape. Because she was from the South, and because she had a skin irritation, and because there was a question about whether or not she had been spayed, the dog rescue asked if I could take her to the vet. We thought that was a great idea.

The vet examined her and said, "This dog is going to have puppies." !!!

I told the dog rescue that we were in no position to adopt a dog and manage a litter of pups. The dog rescue found a wonderful family with little kids who volunteered to foster the little beagle until she delivered and the pups were weaned.

On the morning after Superbowl Sunday, I received an email that the little beagle had six puppies. Despite my calls and leaving messages, I heard little, if anything, for the next week. Then I learned that the little beagle could only nurse two pups at a time, and to keep them all alive, the foster family was bottle-feeding them formula every two hours around the clock. Now that's true dedication.

So the little beagle mix pups should be available for adoption sometime in March. And the little beagle will be ready to come home to us sometime before my birthday. What a wonderful gift. Spring seems to be the "right time" for a new dog.

I named her Stella. The meaning of the name is "star." Her story in our lives began on the Epiphany, the feast of the manifestation of Jesus to the Magi by the sign of the star. I am eager to see how her story unfolds with us.


                                                    Stella



                                Stella's Puppies


No comments: