Tail Talk

I read all the time about how children are our future, and until I began writing Tail Talk that phrase really didn’t mean much to me except in the most literal sense of the word. But since I started volunteering for the Randolph County Humane Society I hear story after story about the children in our midst and the love they have in their hearts for the least of them among us, the animals that have no homes. Today I want to tell you about one of these children. Her Name is Whitney Liefer, the 10 yr. old daughter of Curt and Shawn Liefer. Whitney wrote a beautiful, heartfelt story for a contest that she ultimately won and I believe her words will touch your heart as they have touched mine. Her story is: A Puppy Mill Dog (Based on a True Story of a Rescued Puppy) Zoey (happy and healthy as the “Pack Princess”) When you think of a little seven pound female Shih Tzu, where do you think she is? You probably think she is at a home with a family who loves her. I’m not. My name is Penny, I don’t know where I am. None of the dogs here know where we are. All of the dogs describe this place as the “torture chamber”. At the “torture chamber” there is this man. We all hate him. The man barely feeds us, never takes us outside to go to the bathroom, and hits us if he sees our waste in the cage. I have had two litters of puppies and I’m only two years old. My last litter has just been taken away from me, and I miss them terribly. All the dogs here have the same fantasy. We all believe that someday we might get to be loved by a family. Then again, a dream is a dream, and they usually never come true. One day, just after all of my puppies were taken away from me, the man violently grabbed me out of my cage. I thought I was going to die. That is what he does with all of the dogs he no longer wants. I started shaking. I couldn’t help it. He fiercely hit me. I knew not to yelp because he would just hit me again. The man threw me in the car. I was still shaking. He started zooming down the country roads. I was sure he was speeding. If only a cop would catch him, then I could jump out of the car and run back to the “torture chamber”. Hopefully the cop would chase me, and find the “torture chamber”. Then again it’s only a fantasy. Right after I stopped day dreaming he made a sharp “U” turn. I got car sick. I was sure he was going to hit me, but he didn’t. Then the car stopped. I was sure he was just going to dump me, but he didn’t. Instead he got out of the car and then got me out of the car. He carried me inside a building. I could hear dogs barking. Now I was sure there would never be a family for me or any other dogs at the “torture chamber” to love. The man handed me over to a lady, and she held me gently. That made me stop shaking. After that the man left. That made me happy. The nice lady carried me into an office like area that had two crates, on top of each other. The bottom one had a beagle in it, and the top one was empty. The lady put me in the top one. Again, I started shaking. The lady sat down behind a desk and made a phone call. I glared at her. She could make a phone call, but not hold me? After she finished her phone call she gave me food and water. I gobbled it up even though I was still mad at her. The nice lady also gave me a hair-cut. My hair was long and matted and I looked horrible. Finally I fell asleep and stopped shaking. The next day at 10:00am a family walked in. First they talked to the lady, then they came over to my crate. I started shaking again. I wondered if they were mean. A girl, who looked about 9 years old, gently got me out of the crate. She cradled me and handed me to a man. The man held me for a little while. I started shaking a little bit harder. He reminded me of the man at the “torture chamber”. The man then handed me to a boy. I really didn’t like him. After that he handed me to a woman. I liked the woman the best. Then they left with me. We drove for a long time. We went to Pet’s Mart, and the family bought me a new collar, leash, bed, toy, and even a dress. They took me to a new place where a little baby boy Shih Tzu, named Toby, welcomed me home. He was about the age that my last litter would be, and we got along excellent. I mothered him, and he looked to me for guidance. The first month I was really scared. Every time the door bell rang I would run and hide under the bed. I was scared of the man and the boy, but I really liked the woman and the girl. It took time for me to learn to trust them. In the beginning I wouldn’t take treats from them either. After awhile I realized this was now my forever home and this was my family to love. I now love and trust everyone in the family and I know I will never be hurt again. I was at the Randolph County Humane Society in Sparta, IL less than 24 hours. The nice lady that works there, Heidi, found me a wonderful home. The family took me to the vet for a complete check-up and to be spayed. It has been almost two years, and I am home. I have put on a couple of pounds, my hair has grown out and it is beautiful. I had a rough start to my life, but it has all changed thanks to the wonderful people at the Randolph County Humane Society in Sparta, IL who found me a loving family. Along with Toby, I also have three big dog brothers, two of which were also adopted from the Randolph County Humane Society. I have decided I am the “Pack Princess” since I am the only girl in the pack. Life is wonderful for me now. The family changed my name from Penny to Zoey, and I like that much better. The family is proud that they adopted a dog that needed a home so badly. At first they thought they were giving me a new life, and they did, but I have given something wonderful to the family too, unconditional love. My new family and I will be best friends forever. Epilogue Zoey came from a puppy mill in the Chester, IL area. We will never know why they decided to get rid of her, but we are so thankful that they chose to surrender her to The Randolph County Humane Society. She has become one of the best dogs we have ever owned. Please spay or neuter your pets, because there are so many dogs in shelters that are looking for their forever home. If, or when, you decide to add a furry family friend into your family think about adopting from a shelter. Something else people don’t realize is that there are a lot of pure breed dogs in shelters too, just like Zoey. I have faith in the life that will be if it is inhabited by folks that have the heart and soul of the Whitney’s of the world. Who knows, with them in charge we may outlive our need for shelters. We can only dream. And never forget, it is only through you that the Randolph County Humane Society continues to save lives, one by one.