Not Me Without Tiger
During the holidays, we received so many wonderful love letters from our adopters. This one from Kira, about her BARCS dog Tiger, is extra special and so we want to share it with you.
I adopted Tiger after buying my first home, feeling settled and ready for the commitment of a dog. I walked into BARCS the day before a work trip so that I knew I wouldn't make the spontaneous decision to come home with the first dog I saw. I walked the rooms and wrote down names of pups I thought I might like to meet. I knew I wanted a female dog, ideally over a year old so I focused on dogs who fit that bill. I was so overwhelmed. Until I came to Tiger's kennel. He just sat there, the only dog not barking, just looking defeated. But he was only six months old and male, so I moved onto the next crate, only to see Tiger stick his two little paws out under his kennel door. I went back and he had lain down with the saddest look on his face, resting on his paws. I swear he looked up and into my soul, and I immediately walked to the front desk to submit an application. (I have since learned it’s just his face: permanently sad-looking; which, he has learned, will earn him lots of attention, love and treats from everyone around him.) Because BARCS only holds applications for 24 hours and I was out of town for work, I called frantically the next day (at least 8 times) until I got through to be sure that no one else had put in an application for him.
A year later, Tiger and I were on the couch both recovering from surgery. He had just had his first TPLO repair for a torn CCL, and I had a gash across my neck from where they removed the cancer on my thyroid. The recovery for both of us was long and exhausting, physically and emotionally. Not only were we both physically uncomfortable, but I had ended a serious relationship, was dealing with the aftermath of significant water damage to my home, and battling my ongoing anxiety and depression that was heightened by all we were going through.
I cannot imagine going through that time in my life without Tiger. In fact, despite my dread of “going viral” for whatever embarrassing thing I said/did coming out of anesthesia post-surgery, the only thing I asked, was "How's Tiger?".
At least daily, even when he's driven me bonkers with his separation anxiety antics (I could write a book), I hold his face and tell Tiger how grateful I am for him. On days I can't get out of bed, he curls up with his ridiculously heavy head on my chest until my anxiety calms. On days I can't sit still, he tolerates me dragging him on long walks through the city. You never know what you're going to get when you rescue, but I got the sweetest, goofiest, most loving, supportive lifeline there could be. I would not be me without him.
Share
