ADOPT 09 CONTEST

As the Sarah McLachlin song goes, "You spent all his life waiting for a second chance; for the break that would make it okay." I got my second chance on January 6, 2008, when I went for a long car ride and met my new Mama and sister Kayla. I then found out this was to be my new forever home!

You see, that Saturday in January, I was supposed to be put to sleep forever. My then-mama said she could not longer care for me. She had sent me off for security and obedience training when I was so little and when I came back, I felt like she wanted nothing to do with me. I had so many new things to show her, so many things I had learned, and so wanted to please her, but she did not want to play with me or cuddle with me anymore.

I had over heard her on the phone a few days before my car ride that she thought I was unpredictible, that I was aggressive, and that I would someday bite someone. Was she actually talking about me??? Vegas?? The puppy she had once loved so much, the puppy she sent away to be trained, the puppy she then ignored and left in a crate all day except for one walk a day? Well, I had to get out and stretch my legs and run. When she called me to come in, obviously I did not want to and got upset. I did not want to go back into that crate again!!! I wanted to play and run but she would not let me.

Next thing I know, I am on this long car ride. I don't know where I am going, why my family did not want my anymore, or what my future holds. The two ladies in the car knew the people they were bringing me to. I heard them say "she lives in the country" and "she has a female German Shepherd who will get along great with him."

When I arrived, I was so scared. I wanted to impress this new lady and her dog so much! They lived in the country with lots of room to run and play!!! The first thing the new lady did was remove my choke collar and put a very comfortable nylon collar around my neck. She looked me in the eye and said, we don't allow choke collars in this house. I gave her a big smile and wished she could hear me say "Thank You!!" She pet me behind the ears and said I was very handsome, while shaking her head "yes" to the ladies that brought me here. As if on cue, the other two ladies unloaded my crate, my food, and my one toy, a half chewed frisbee, on the deck.

After meeting my new sister and watching us play in the yard together, the two ladies left me at my new forever home. Mama then took the door off my crate so I could come and go as I wanted to. I never went in that crate again. Mama said it was okay if I slept in the bed with her and my sister Kayla.

In the next 11 months, I learned to catch and retrieve a tennis ball, play in the snow, chase a remote control skunk, play with Kayla, try all kinds of human food, cheeseburgers being one of my favorites, and just learned how to be a puppy all over again!!! I was so happy.

Mama would tell me that rescued puppies were very special ones, as they were chosen to be a part of a family that really, really wanted them. I always felt wanted and loved as part of my new forever family.

As an adopted, rescued animal, I can truly say that if it had not been for the two ladies who stepped in and took me away from my first mama and brought me to my second mama, I would not have had a satisfying, happy, and loving second chance in life. My mama and sister had so much love to share that if I had not come along when I did, I know they would have adopted another rescue animal.

I am a perfect example of what one person considered a "Throw Away" animal, but am also called a "loving, full of kisses, 45 pound lap dog" by another. Just because I did not work out with my last family did not mean I wouldn't work out in another family. I am proof that rescued or abandoned animals like me can have a second chance in life!! If only more people would adopt rescue and abandoned animals.

Well, my story does have a sad ending, but also a happy one. I loved to run and mama would let me, when she could supervise, but this one evening, I slipped past mama and ran out the door. I don't know what actually happened, but all of a sudden, I could look down and see my mom, Kayla, my house, and my yard. I was flying!!! I crossed something called the Rainbow Bridge. I could look down and see Mama crying and very upset. Kayla just laid in her crate and did not eat. Mama held my toys and cried some more. I think I did something stupid like running across the road to see my fur friend Max and got hit by a car. It was the day after Thanskgiving, November 26, 2008.

The happy ending to my story is that after mama and Kayla buried me in the back yard with my toys and bones (yes, I was very spoiled!), they went to the local animal shelter and adopted another pup. His name is Brisco and he is from the Tennessee Rescue Wagon. If you are not aware, the Rescue Wagon takes animals from other states where they are in danger of being euthanized and brings them to shelters that can accommodate them. I am very proud to say my Mama and Kayla continued what they started with me, by rescuing an abandoned animal and also giving him a second chance at life. I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who does devote their time, energy, and puts their money where their mouth is, to adopt and rescue animals. While we cannot verbalize how much we appreciate your help, we do show you by how much we love you!!

Love, Vegas

Footnote from Mama:

Vegas was overly protective of his new family and while he was a 45 pound Belgian Malinois, he thought he was a lap dog, always wanting to be next to mama's side. He never stepped foot in his crate again after coming to his new forever home!! His passing leaves such an emptiness in his mama's heart. He was so loved and SO spoiled at his furever home. Thank you, Vegas, for allowing us to love you so much.

It hurt!

I came home from my run in the winter wheat field with my sister Kayla and mama noticed I was licking my leg. I didn't know what to tell her, but I think I ran thru some barbed wire and cut myself all up. Mama rushed me to the vet and I had to stay all weekend after getting stitches in five different spots! One cut was so deep, you could see my tendons and muscle. I am okay now, only have one week left with the cone on my head. I keep bumping into the walls, the doors, the furniture, mama, Kayla, and everything else. So, watch out when you are having fun following your nose, watch out for barbed wire!!!