Utterly lovabull . . .

and OURS! This is the post I've been dying to write, so bear with me. :-)

Two weeks ago today was the "first time ever I saw (Dozer's) face. I thought the sun rose in (his) eyes". . . and I was a goner.

Those who have read this blog for at least two years know that on October 17, 2007, I had to say good-bye to my "heart" dog. Nothing in my life so far has been more heart-wrenching than losing Rosie, and it left us not just dogless, but bulldogless. Ever since getting Rosie's parents I had said to anyone interested, "I can't imagine not having a bulldog in my life now," and yet there we were. Rick said we could get a bullie pup, but the first breeder I talked to, someone I highly respect, said, "Oh hon, you're not ready" when I burst into tears on the phone. And I was afraid she was right; afraid that I could form that kind of bond with no other dog on earth. After discussing it at length, Rick and I decided to get a dog for Brian rather than for me, and Jackson entered our lives in December, 2007. Jackson is a wonderful dog and I love him dearly, but - to state the obvious - he is not a bulldog.

Over a year ago I sent in an application to Cascade Bulldog Rescue, thinking an adult bulldog would be a saner approach to filling the bulldog-shaped hole in my heart than a puppy. Nothing ever came of that, and my application eventually "aged out" and I didn't reapply. Fast forward to last month. A local pet supply store had some coupons in the community coupon flyer, and each coupon had a tiny photo of a bulldog and the invitation to "come in and see Frankie." Needing a bulldog fix and a tool to get VM out of fleeces, Brian and I stopped by one day. Turns out the owner is a member and foster mom for Cascade Bulldog Rescue, and of course we got to talking. She thought a good candidate for us would be a young male who had just been surrendered because of his need for expensive surgery that his family was unable to pay for, and encouraged me to fill out an adoption application again. I did and sent her a follow-up email, and then waited. I was about ready to contact her again when I got a call that fateful Friday. It was my friend Debbie (who has Rosie's brother), who had stopped by the pet supply store to meet Frankie for herself. And who should be at the store just two days after his surgeries than Dozer! She gushed about how cute and sweet he was, and urged me to drop everything to come in and meet him. I called Rick who agreed to meet me, and off to town Brian and I dashed. Dozer was as cute and sweet as billed, and good with Brian, too. He reminded me somewhat of Rosie's mom Ruby, only better conformed. Oh, his surgeries? To repair the overly loose lids of his right eye and amputate his tail. He hadn't been kept as clean as necessary, and an infection got started that eventually involved his tailbone. Now his eyelids are fixed and his backside is as round as a billiard ball:
Anyway, I tried not to get too excited, since the rescue gets far more applications to adopt than they have bulldogs to re-home. But after Rick and Brian left I told the store owner we were definitely interested, and to keep us in mind for when Dozer was healed up and ready to go to a new home. Unfortunately, I learned that evening that Rick was far from impressed, and not at all sure Dozer was the bulldog he would chose.

The very next day I got an email from Dozer's foster mom, saying that she thought our home would be perfect for Dozer. Rick wasn't convinced; he wanted to meet Dozer again but kept stopping by on days when Dozer was gone or had already left. Finally, today, he saw Dozer again, and while still reluctant, agreed to the adoption.We pick him up tomorrow after church. I know Rick is going along with this primarily for me, and I am oh, so thankful.

Utterly happy at . . .