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Loving a Pet

by Greg Schlichting

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. --1 Peter 4:8

 

--In the late summer of 2020, my wife Diane and I lost Bailey. She was a twelve-year-old Lab, and such a good, friendly, and obedient dog. She developed seizures, which led to bowel and urinary issues, and we knew it was time to say goodbye. We had to put her down.

-- We’ve had about 12 dogs in the family, mostly Labs. Maybe a week or two after Bailey died, the house was lonely, and we knew that we had to get another dog. So, we started looking online. We picked out a lab puppy, and I drove down to get it, but the owner said I was too old. They didn’t say it right out, but that’s what we figured.

-- Eventually, we found a site in Fridley that had brought 30 dogs from a kill shelter in Oklahoma. They were selling them for about $700 each. We picked out two dogs to look at. One was big and beautiful, but not a Labrador Retriever. When we arrived at the Fridley shelter, there were thirty people in line to get a dog, but because we had registered in advance, we had priority.

-- Thirty of us sat on benches, and a lady brought in a female black Lab, about 4- to 5-months old but already 35 or 40 pounds. When this pup was taken off her leash, she came right over to us and jumped into my lap! I melted and looked at Diane. She shrugged as if to say, “Okay.” We knew she was our dog. She had been named Tesla, but we changed it to Tessa.

-- The shelter lady told us how to transport her, so we obediently kenneled her in the back seat of our club cab. As we drove, she was shivering like crazy, especially when we drove past trucks. We figured the ride in a truck from Oklahoma to Minnesota was quite scary for her. Pretty soon, we stopped on the side of the freeway and brought her into the front seat with us. She lay down in the blanket on Diane’s lap, and as we comforted her, she quit shivering and went right to sleep.

-- When we got her home, she started exploring each room. We expected to have to “potty” train her, but she never had a single accident. She knew she was home.

-- There were some surprises. About a week after she came home, Tessa barked for the first time. It sounded like a hound dog – more of a howl, really. We looked at each other: “What was that?” We now knew she wasn’t a full-blooded Lab. We researched, and we’re pretty sure she is a cross between a Labrador Retriever and a Pharaoh Hound. The Hound sound is unique. She talks to us a lot. Every day at walking time, she is right at my feet. She’ll make a low sound, and then suddenly – right on time, twice a day - a loud howl. “Let’s get going!”

-- Also, she is not that obedient. I could tell Bailey not to chase rabbits, and she would look at me and obey. Not Tessa. I can’t let her off the leash when we walk; she’s all over the place sniffing out every squirrel and rabbit. We never let any of our other dogs on the furniture. Tessa is right up there on the couch with me every day, leaning her cheek against mine when she can.

-- Her favorite show is “Lucky Dog,” a show about a guy who trains shelter dogs. Diane watches it every Saturday. Tessa jumps down off the couch and gets right up to the TV to watch those dogs. And I still can’t get her to quit jumping up on people, though she’s a lot better than at first.

-- We have been frustrated with Tessa more than all our other dogs, and of course, she can tell when she’s being a disappointment. But every day, she is a reminder of God’s loyalty and unconditional love. Regardless of how we have raised our voices at her, she curls up next to us. She always prefers cuddling with a person to being alone.

 

Thank You, Lord, for the love You give us through and for our pets.  Thank You for showing us Your character

through their loyalty and unconditional love. Help us to care for them the way You care for us. -- Amen.

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