MEG
I am a recent new mother of a Hubbard's Hound rescue dog
and I cannot stop talking about her. Rather than bore my
friends silly and inundate all my new friends at Hubbard's
Hounds with the same old stories, I thought it might be
helpful for me to share some of my experiences and convince
some of you out there on the joys of adoption.
First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Linda and I
am a city dweller and a working woman living in a studio apt.
I knew a puppy was not for me, and the rescue groups in my
immediate area thought I would make a fine dog owner if I
would only move to the suburbs and buy a house with a
fenced in yard. Having a dog requires alot of sacrifices, but
that was beyond my means. I will make a long story short,
and skip to Meg, the love of my life.
I am a recent new mother of a Hubbard's Hound rescue dog
and I cannot stop talking about her. Rather than bore my
friends silly and inundate all my new friends at Hubbard's
Hounds with the same old stories, I thought it might be
helpful for me to share some of my experiences and convince
some of you out there on the joys of adoption.
First of all, let me introduce myself. My name is Linda and I
am a city dweller and a working woman living in a studio apt.
I knew a puppy was not for me, and the rescue groups in my
immediate area thought I would make a fine dog owner if I
would only move to the suburbs and buy a house with a
fenced in yard. Having a dog requires alot of sacrifices, but
that was beyond my means. I will make a long story short,
and skip to Meg, the love of my life.
Meg is a 4 to 6 year old poodle mix who spent her entire life in a puppy mill. This was not exactly my
ideal dog. I was only looking at poodle mixes, but I wanted a 2 to 4 year old re-homed dog who would
bound into my home, jump on my lap, and lick my face, and love me instantly. But there she was -- my
Meg -- on the pages of petfinder.com with the biggest, saddest, blackest eyes I had ever seen. I fell
head-over-heels in love. But as we all know, the road to love is not easy. I wrote to Susan who passed
me on to Kim P, Meg's foster mom. Kim and I spoke and emailed for over a month before she was sure
I was up to the challenge.
And a mill dog is a challenge, but also the greatest joy. When I first met Meg she would run in circles to
get away from me. Everything except other dogs scared her. Remember, she'd lived in a cage for 5
years and had probably been bred twice a year. No one had ever scratched her behind the ear or fed
her a treat or told her what a good girl she was. For the first 2 days in my home she stayed in her crate
and would not come out. I had to crawl half-way in to get her out to walk her. The thing that always
fascinates me about Meg, is that after all the horrors that have been inflicted upon her by humans, she
does not have a mean bone her body. I terrified her those first 2 days, but she never tried to retaliate.
On the 3rd day, my friend came over with her dog, and Meg ventured out never to return to the safety of
her crate.
I've had Meg now for almost 4 months, and every day with her is a new adventure. She is still not like
other dogs. She doesn't know how to play and she's shy about showing affection, although she accepts
it readily. She loves all dogs and is learning not to be scared of people. She goes for walks with me,
and even rides the subway with me. I take her to the hairdressers, and this once terrified little dog who
jumped at any strange sound sleeps in my lap while I have my hair blown dry. We go to the dog park
where she frolics with other dogs, but always turns her head to make sure I'm there. Mill dogs are not
for everyone. Some are certainly not for families with small children, but if you're patient, a natural born
caregiver and teacher, then a mill dog will be the greatest gift you can give yourself. You'll be teaching a
dog how to become a dog again, teaching a frightened animal how to breathe free, and most
importantly how to love.
ideal dog. I was only looking at poodle mixes, but I wanted a 2 to 4 year old re-homed dog who would
bound into my home, jump on my lap, and lick my face, and love me instantly. But there she was -- my
Meg -- on the pages of petfinder.com with the biggest, saddest, blackest eyes I had ever seen. I fell
head-over-heels in love. But as we all know, the road to love is not easy. I wrote to Susan who passed
me on to Kim P, Meg's foster mom. Kim and I spoke and emailed for over a month before she was sure
I was up to the challenge.
And a mill dog is a challenge, but also the greatest joy. When I first met Meg she would run in circles to
get away from me. Everything except other dogs scared her. Remember, she'd lived in a cage for 5
years and had probably been bred twice a year. No one had ever scratched her behind the ear or fed
her a treat or told her what a good girl she was. For the first 2 days in my home she stayed in her crate
and would not come out. I had to crawl half-way in to get her out to walk her. The thing that always
fascinates me about Meg, is that after all the horrors that have been inflicted upon her by humans, she
does not have a mean bone her body. I terrified her those first 2 days, but she never tried to retaliate.
On the 3rd day, my friend came over with her dog, and Meg ventured out never to return to the safety of
her crate.
I've had Meg now for almost 4 months, and every day with her is a new adventure. She is still not like
other dogs. She doesn't know how to play and she's shy about showing affection, although she accepts
it readily. She loves all dogs and is learning not to be scared of people. She goes for walks with me,
and even rides the subway with me. I take her to the hairdressers, and this once terrified little dog who
jumped at any strange sound sleeps in my lap while I have my hair blown dry. We go to the dog park
where she frolics with other dogs, but always turns her head to make sure I'm there. Mill dogs are not
for everyone. Some are certainly not for families with small children, but if you're patient, a natural born
caregiver and teacher, then a mill dog will be the greatest gift you can give yourself. You'll be teaching a
dog how to become a dog again, teaching a frightened animal how to breathe free, and most
importantly how to love.
Read more about Meg on The Animal Rescue Site!
UPDATE from SUMMER 2011:
This is Meg checking in. I haven't written in a long time and I wanted to tell you about the trip my mommy
took me on with Teddy and his mommy and our friend Nancy (Nancy is Missy's mommy, but let's face it,
cats are a drag and don't like to travel.)
Mommy has decided to stop worrying about the fact that I get scared when I leave the house. I don't like
the hallway and I don't like the elevator, but once I get out and know I'm going to have fun, I relax. And
when my mommy and Teddy are by my side, I can do almost anything. So we all took the high speed
Ferry from Boston to Provincetown. I love boat rides. I especially like it when it gets all windy and I can
feel the wind going through my hair. I know I've been out of the mill for over 3 years , but you can't
imagine how glorious it is to me just to be outside.
In 2010 Provincetown was voted the most dog friendly place in America. There are some kind of funny
looking people there, but who cares since everyone loves dogs! The mommies like to shop, and almost
every store we went into offered Teddy and me treats. And almost every restaurant has a sign saying
they welcome dogs on their outdoor patios. Everything was so yummy. Mommy says I've developed
expensive tastes because one of my favorite human foods is lobster (it's so much better than when
mommy gives me a taste of that rather than her canned tuna!!).We also walked a little bit on the beach,
but I have to admit that the beaches in Provincetown are not very nice, too many pebbles.
The highlight of the trip, at least for me, was when mommy took Teddy and me on a long walk. She
wanted to see Norman Mailer's house and the inn-keeper said it was only a mile away. So we walked
and walked and finally got there. There was a writer's workeshop going on and it was closed, but
mommy knocked on the door to ask to come in and they let her take a peak around the first floor. No
one blinked or said anything as Teddy and me followed after her.
The three of us were very tired so mommy called a cab (I like cars and not just boats) and we were on
our way home when we spotted Aunt Beth coming down the road looking for us. we all jumped out and
walked back the rest of the way with her. But we stopped at a fancy grocery store and we all went in to
buy some soft drinks to sit out back and look at the ocean. (Teddy and I have never been allowed inside
of a grocery store before.) Guess what? It smelled just wonderful there -- it was some kind of
combination of poop and dead fish and dead sea gull and who knows what else. I couldn't resist -- I
just threw myself into it and rolled all over it. It was heaven. I kicked up my legs and squirmed here and
there and had the best time. I have the best mommy in the world because she lets me do this because
it makes me so happy and I feel so free. I thought I smelled great, but the price for freedom and
happiness is a bath in a small bathroom sink.
Everyone said I was very well behaved. I did get a bit scared this morning when mommy went to take a
shower and I got nervous and kind of missed the pee pad. But it was a dark throw rug and Aunt Beth
cleaned up after me.
I hope you all had a good summer and a fun vacation. But my number one wish is that all dogs
everywhere will one day be free to wriggle in the dirt like me and have a mommy who takes it all in stride.
Love, Meg
This is Meg checking in. I haven't written in a long time and I wanted to tell you about the trip my mommy
took me on with Teddy and his mommy and our friend Nancy (Nancy is Missy's mommy, but let's face it,
cats are a drag and don't like to travel.)
Mommy has decided to stop worrying about the fact that I get scared when I leave the house. I don't like
the hallway and I don't like the elevator, but once I get out and know I'm going to have fun, I relax. And
when my mommy and Teddy are by my side, I can do almost anything. So we all took the high speed
Ferry from Boston to Provincetown. I love boat rides. I especially like it when it gets all windy and I can
feel the wind going through my hair. I know I've been out of the mill for over 3 years , but you can't
imagine how glorious it is to me just to be outside.
In 2010 Provincetown was voted the most dog friendly place in America. There are some kind of funny
looking people there, but who cares since everyone loves dogs! The mommies like to shop, and almost
every store we went into offered Teddy and me treats. And almost every restaurant has a sign saying
they welcome dogs on their outdoor patios. Everything was so yummy. Mommy says I've developed
expensive tastes because one of my favorite human foods is lobster (it's so much better than when
mommy gives me a taste of that rather than her canned tuna!!).We also walked a little bit on the beach,
but I have to admit that the beaches in Provincetown are not very nice, too many pebbles.
The highlight of the trip, at least for me, was when mommy took Teddy and me on a long walk. She
wanted to see Norman Mailer's house and the inn-keeper said it was only a mile away. So we walked
and walked and finally got there. There was a writer's workeshop going on and it was closed, but
mommy knocked on the door to ask to come in and they let her take a peak around the first floor. No
one blinked or said anything as Teddy and me followed after her.
The three of us were very tired so mommy called a cab (I like cars and not just boats) and we were on
our way home when we spotted Aunt Beth coming down the road looking for us. we all jumped out and
walked back the rest of the way with her. But we stopped at a fancy grocery store and we all went in to
buy some soft drinks to sit out back and look at the ocean. (Teddy and I have never been allowed inside
of a grocery store before.) Guess what? It smelled just wonderful there -- it was some kind of
combination of poop and dead fish and dead sea gull and who knows what else. I couldn't resist -- I
just threw myself into it and rolled all over it. It was heaven. I kicked up my legs and squirmed here and
there and had the best time. I have the best mommy in the world because she lets me do this because
it makes me so happy and I feel so free. I thought I smelled great, but the price for freedom and
happiness is a bath in a small bathroom sink.
Everyone said I was very well behaved. I did get a bit scared this morning when mommy went to take a
shower and I got nervous and kind of missed the pee pad. But it was a dark throw rug and Aunt Beth
cleaned up after me.
I hope you all had a good summer and a fun vacation. But my number one wish is that all dogs
everywhere will one day be free to wriggle in the dirt like me and have a mommy who takes it all in stride.
Love, Meg