On January 11, 2018, I met Rose and Alicia at the Kitsap Humane Society to take a look at a dog named Angelica that Rose spotted on their webpage. I was there on time, and they were late, almost so late that we would miss adopting her until the next day. Luckily, the staff was nice enough and allowed us to visit with Angelica and hear her entire story. She was thought to be about seven years old. She had a cone on because she had been spayed and had a couple of growths removed. She really dealt with the cone well for the week that she had to wear it. Neither of the growths were cancerous, which was good. She looked kind of like a Labrador but she was much smaller. We would later learn that she was a Flat-Coated Retriever, an actual breed.
The counselor told us what they knew of her medical history, but of course, there were no guarantees. They said she had been brought in as a stray, but it was clear to us that she was someone’s companion at one point. The counselor asked if we still wanted to adopt her and we all said yes. She was entitled to a good life no matter how long it would be.
We brought her home, and not knowing how she would be, Rose stayed in the front room with her at nights for the first few days. She was house trained and would whimper if she needed to go outside. After a few nights, we introduced her to her bed in our bedroom, and she slept through the night. As a matter of fact, she is a good sleeper, wanting to sleep in every morning.
One thing we learned that first day is she knows the words “out” and “outside”. As soon as they are said, her tail starts wagging and she is heading for the door. We haven’t found any other words that she keys on except those two.
We renamed her Luna, and proceeded to teach her the new name. Within a couple of weeks, Rose had her in obedience school for six weeks where she and Rose really bonded. She cries if Rose leaves to go outside, even for a minute. She listens to Rose the best.
It’s been over two months since we brought her home and she has been a great dog and friend to us all. She gets a lot of attention, with Alicia taking her down to the beach almost every day and Rose and Alicia taking her on short hikes. She rides well in the car, but she does want to get into the front seats.
She now stays with us in the backyard without a leash and stays put while we do various yard work. We are still afraid that she could chase a squirrel or rabbit and run out in the road in front of our house, so we keep a close eye on her. She is fitting right in with the family and is already a cherished member.
