Gene picked up Ms. Abbie on Thursday for a trial run at our house. She is a 5 year old, Border Collie with a sharp drive to chase frisbees and balls.
Her first day with us was awkward and painful as we watched our other dog, Missy, melt in disappointment that we'd brought another bitch into the house. It wasn't at all the reaction I was expecting.
I'm always expecting. Expecting that things will go my way. Expecting other people to read my mind. Expecting our new adoptee will come in and be playful with Missy.
When Abbie didn't rise to my expectation, I was ready to take her back to the shelter the next day. It was hard to see Missy get all mopey and bowled over by this hard-driven canine. I was ready to give up until an unexpected visit from our kind neighbors. They have 2 rescue dogs and each of them has different personalities. They were encouraging and said we should really give everybody a chance to adjust. That made sense to me. So we slept on it.
This morning I woke up with a different attitude. I completely, 100% abandoned my expectations of this dog.
What I realized throughout today is that Abbie is just who she is. She has a great need to have people who will take time from their day to throw the frisbee and ball as least a couple hundred times. What a joy!
I see her now through a different pair of glasses. And, Missy is adjusting. It's all going to be just fine.
What were you expecting when you saw the title of this post?
What were you expecting when you saw the title of this post?
love, susan
I was like "NO WAY, PREGNANT!?"
ReplyDeleteHahaha.
Do Missy and Abbie like to walk together? That could be an awesome bonding experience for them.
We did walk them together and they do just fine. Of course, Abbie (the border collie), does the whole zig-zag thing that BC's do. I always so fascinated with the imprinting of certain breeds.
Delete"An expectation is a premeditated resentment."
ReplyDeleteSource? Someone wiser than I...
Oh John ~ that totally came up for me!!! And then, of course, pause. I had to pause and well, you know.
DeleteSo happy to hear you have a new perspective on the whole thing and are going to keep Abbie. It takes time to adjust - for dogs too. Good luck and thanks for taking in a rescue animal!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I thought "pregnant?????" Noooooooooooooooooooo. :)
Haha! Well, I did know a woman once who was on the cusp of menopause at age 52 who had IVF (in vitro fertilization) and ended up with twin. No thank you! LOL!!!
DeleteIt's now Sunday and things are much better with all the critters in our household. Yeah!!
I was so smitten with the cute dog picture, that I didn't notice the title of the post until you questioned what we were expecting from the title. Based on the picture, I was expecting to read about your new dog, and I was not disappointed! Glad things are going fine now.
ReplyDeleteI know, isn't she beautiful? She is a character too!
DeleteShe is just beautiful! And she is going to keep you on your toes! Raven is half border collie, and she wants to play ALL DAY LONG! What a wonderful addition to the family! I hope things continue to go well.
ReplyDeleteSo far, so good! She has an amazing abundance of energy! It's all about playing frisbee.
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