Sadie By Angela Rieck

Hi. 

Sadie here.

You haven’t heard my name before, so let me introduce myself. I am a new dog in the Gus and Annie household. Like Gus and Annie, I had a bit of a ride before I got here.

I came from a puppy mill in Blairstown, NJ. The breeder got tired of abusing dogs, oh, I mean, selling puppies on the Internet; she retired and left us to fend for ourselves. A couple of rescue groups got involved and I came to my current cage (which my adopter calls a home) via one of these groups.

My adopter got tired of writing columns this week, so, she left it with me. She is doing the typing, and I am sitting on her lap giving her endless kisses, jumping up and down, and otherwise making it hard for her to type my story.

You see, I am not a normal dog. I am a puppy mill mom, and everyone is trying to figure out why I am so friendly. It is because I am very brave and have decided to learn how to live the life of a dog. I figure that the best way to do that is to let people and dogs help me.

I keep trying to get my new mom’s attention by scratching her arm, licking her, squirming…she’s decided to pet me.

Okay, I’m back now.

I have already learned my name; I didn’t have one before…or not that I knew of. It’s got a nice sound to it, so I responded right away.

I have a lot of things to learn about my new cage, I mean home. It is ginormous. I lived in a small crate where I pooped, peed, bred, and nursed my babies. This enormous cage is filled with very soft things the other dogs call furniture and they showed me how to jump on it. We sleep on something that my new siblings call a bed. It is also enormous, but I am able to crowd right next to my adopted mom.

Another arm touch (she is taking a long time to type my story). Snuggle time.

Back again.

As for my outward appearance. I am gray and probably a toy poodle or yorkie-poo. The breeder wasn’t clear, but she was selling my puppies as yorkie-poos. I am very affectionate and wiggly. I’m probably three years old, tall and slender, and I weighed 7 ½ pounds when I arrived. But I had almost a pound of matted fur. I got shaved down and spayed so my puppy raising days are over. I also had a few teeth pulled. I had never seen a veterinarian before, and I would be happy not to see one again. It hurts!!!

Living in a cage, I never learned how to play.  My new siblings are older and seem to agree.

The adoption agency wanted my new mom to adopt my brother/husband/cousin (you get the idea). I wanted that too, but my new mom said she had her hands full with three dogs, so he is still looking for his own special home.

I just licked her neck to get some more snuggles.

And, back again.

One of the first things that she did was put a collar on me. I’ve never had one of those before and it is annoying, I keep trying to scratch it off.

The other rescued dogs from my puppy mill (the shelter that took me also took another 8 of them) are still in their temporary shelters, waiting for that special home. Most are mini golden doodles who also lived a cramped life in a crate in an unheated and un-air-conditioned barn. They need a home that has another dog that can show them how to be a dog. They need to learn about the outdoors, treats, petting, snuggling, quality food, walking on a leash, and where to go potty. They are looking for patient people with nice dogs who will gently and quietly teach them about all of these scary things.

As for me, I could spend all day in a lap just kissing and snuggling. Maybe because it is so daunting out here. The cage, I mean home, is huge compared to my old cage (an actual crate), I don’t know where to go to the bathroom in my new cage. I am used to going wherever I want, so I am trying to learn the new rules here. I have learned that if I pee outside, she calls my name and snuggles with me. So, I pee outside when I remember. (She said that she will never put me in a small crate…fine with me.)

The outside is full of colors, plants, animals and all sorts of things that I have never seen before. There is even furniture outside just like the furniture inside my new home.  I have to admit, the outside is a little scary, especially grass, which feels so weird.

So, all of this is a bit overwhelming for me. 

But I have already mastered stairs and the doggie door. And I will learn from Gus and Annie and from my mom. I will be good and learn how to be a dog. 

Because I am very, very brave.

---