Pat writes:

“Maggie joined our family on Sunday, December 2nd. She immediately made herself at home by raiding the toy basket belonging to our other dogs Dolly and Buddy. Luckily, they were very accepting of this new little presence in their lives. The woods where we walk are a source of great joy to Maggie. She races around in the fallen leaves, up and down hills, but always just a short distance from us, making sure that her new family is still close by. Maggie loves food in any shape or form. After our morning walk in the woods, she, Dolly, and Buddy, join us in the sun room every morning to share "human breakfast!"
I think if I were asked to describe the defining moment of Maggie's arrival in our lives, it would be when we put the lights out the first night, and Maggie, who was lying on the bed, snuggled up to me, laid her head on my feet, gave a huge sigh of contentment, and fell fast asleep.
Maggie is now quite accustomed to her new family. When we first got her, she would sleep right on top of us at night, as though she was afraid we would disappear if she didn't keep us pinned down. This made it very difficult to turn over in bed! She now allows us a little more space. We took Maggie and our other dog Buddy on a trip to Charleston, SC and she loved chasing the sandpipers on the beach. She continues to bring us great joy and, as is typical of all rescued dogs, demonstrates her love and gratitude 24/7.”

UPDATE January 2010:

“Maggie came to stay with us on December 2nd two years ago. She was sweet, loved to snuggle, and got along well with our other two rescue dogs. There were several areas of concern, however, one of which was that she could not bear to have us touch her hindquarters and literally screamed whenever we did. She also would scream when she when to the bathroom. Since Maggie has a very strange gait, and also sits strangely, we concluded that she had some injury. We took her to the vet who examined her and demonstrated that when he tickled her she also screamed, so much so, that everyone in the vet’s office jumped! The problem, he concluded, was psychological and not a pain issue. Bathing her was a nightmare.”

“We made progress with her slowly over the next year and a half, and had arrived at a point where we could lift her in and out of her car seat, and bathe her with only an occasional scream. Her demeanor, however, was often wary, Then six months ago, having lost our retriever to cancer, we adopted an eight year old, flat coated retriever mix named Sidney who had been so badly abused that he didn’t know how to be a dog. He was afraid of everything. People, cars, sudden movements, and even the sight of a leash sent him into a terrorized frenzy. We began taking him into the woods with us on our daily walks. Maggie always enjoyed the walks, but stuck close to us, but she began enticing Sidney to run into the woods with her. Gradually, she and Sidney began to gain confidence from each other until, now, they go rushing off chasing both real and imaginary “critters” the minute they are unleashed.”

“As Sidney blossomed under our care, Maggie too changed.  Sidney loves to be bathed. Maggie, too, decided, that perhaps she didn’t need to scream when we would bathe her. She had never displayed any interest in toys but, one day, much to our surprise, she pulled out a squeaky toy and began to make noise.  When she saw our delight, there was no stopping her.  We paid our youngest daughter a visit at Thanksgiving, and she, too, remarked on the change in Maggie. In our efforts to socialize Sidney, we have also unleashed a much more carefree side to Maggie and it is such a joy to behold!”