Carlito is Back!
It's mid fall and several months has passed since our Carlito went to stay with his foster pet parents. In "Pet Therapy Soothes the Soul" I explained why we had to get rid of him. After my dog left, my heart ached for months. It felt as though I was mourning the loss of a family member. Alast! We had found a cute little bungalo ranch for rent in the Atlanta suburbs and were planning to move in a couple of weeks. We found a place who allowed us to bring him...I'm just grateful there is no HOA or any covenant restrictions. I was so happy we could finally get our Carlito back permanently! So happy, in fact, I reunited with him a little sooner so that he could transition more easily with us during the move. Though he needed a good grooming, upon external inpection, he seemed of good health...just a few bumps and knicks but internally he was still the same. And no fleas or ticks (yeah!) But unfortunately he was rotten! Ok… So perhaps he has always been a wee bit rotten before, but now he returns with more baggage…From now being allowed to sit on the couch to just being hard-headed…I’d say his stay was pretty adventurous to say the least! As I sit here thinking about his first days back, I chuckle when I recall seeing Carlito stretched out enjoying some sleep under my desk as I worked. And it was as if he was relieved he could finally get some good rest. As we settled in, we tried to give him a little space to re-adjust, but not without some much needed exercise and discipline! For the most part though he just slept and hung aroung me most of the time for the first few days. But practically fit right in and didn’t seem to miss a beat. While he was showered with much love and attention—having lived in a mullti-family foster home with 5 active children, a another puppy and 5 adults— let’s just say…he seemed to appreciate the peace.
A New Home…New Surroundings
We knew we had found the right place when we took him over to check out (aka sniff out) the new place before we moved in. Upon entering, he carefully went from room to room sniffing like a dog...but more like the canine version of a HGTV's show host Mike, the home inspector who comes in and makes it all better. Then we opened the door to his doggie paradise...a chain link fence surrounded by a dense forest centered in the back...a place where red cardinals frequent, dreadful winter trees bloosoms beautiful buds in the spring and squirrels galore!...After stopping to appreciate the landscape, he ran around in that back yard as if he had been there before! Like he knew it was his! My husband and I both looked at each other with confirmation…he just ran around, stopping to explore his surroundings...we were pleased to see him so content.
It was a blessing that we were finally able to move! Although Carlito has the perfect temperament as an apartment dog, we knew it was not worth the battle to keep him in that environment (apartment living-blah). Now with breed restriction woes behind us, we had to move on. Though we've had to move several times since adopting him, Carlito is always a trooper and has demonstrated remarkable adaptability. Despite a history of instability, his "social butterfly" status still reigns!...Now, we are finally back in a home, although not quite as big as the first house he came home to, but where he has a nice fenced yard with plenty of squirrels and cats to chase. Not to mention he's happy to be finally back with his family. And so are we!...I think he tries to thank us as much as he can!###
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