That's My Dog

Yes, I am one of those people who thinks of his dog as his child.  Her name is Libby and I love her a ridiculous amount.

Libby came into my life just over 3 years ago.  Back in July of 2009 Kelly and I were a few weeks away from moving into our first house and we decided that the time was right to start looking for a four-legged friend.  We talked about going to a shelter to adopt but kept putting it off because the thought of seeing a room full of dogs in cages is just heartbreaking to me.  I'd probably try and take all of them home.  So instead I began checking Craigslist and on July 4th a post caught my eye.  It was from a girl who had a lab mix around a year old and she was just a 5 minute ride away.  We set up a meeting for that afternoon and Libby was home with us that evening.

Libby on the day we brought her home.

The girl, Emma, who was giving Libby up hadn't had her for very long.  She had rescued her from the Wake County Animal Shelter just a few days earlier because Libby was just hours away from being put down.  It's a thought that even today brings me to the verge of tears.(WCAS did become a no kill shelter in 2010 but that wouldn't have helped poor Libby.)  Emma was living in a small one bedroom apartment and going to school at NC State full time so she quickly realized that she had bit off more than she could handle.

When we arrived to meet the two of them they were waiting for us in the parking lot outside her apartment.  We said hello and I crouched down to pet Libby when suddenly she reared up, put her paws into the air and flung them over my shoulders giving me a sweet dog hug.  That sealed it right there.  We gathered up her crate and a few toys she had and were back home within the hour.  

The first thing we did when we got home was give her a new name.  Emma was calling her Tessa but it didn't fit.  The shelter paperwork said her name was Ginger but that was too Gilligan's Island for me.  Since we got her on the 4th of July we came up with Liberty but we shortened it to Libby.  It is also a reference to a character from our favorite show at the time, Lost. 

Over the past three years Libby has been a great dog.  Sure she has chewed some things up, including my xbox controller, numerous dvd cases and a few wrapped Christmas presents, but nothing that couldn't be replaced.  The love that she has brought into our home has more than made up for it.  There is nothing like coming home to her smiling face in the window, knowing she is going to be jumping for joy to greet me at the door.  Literally.  The dog bounces like Tigger, all four legs off the ground.   She is just so excited to show her love she can barely contain it.  I know the feeling.  I feel the same way about her.