The other morning, I was at the dog pound on personal business. I was NOT looking for a dog in any shape or form. The pound does not handle cats but they often get donations of cat food both dry and wet and look to unload them on rescues.

While I was there, they were discussing a recent stray drop off saying it was a shame that this senior dog had been abandoned. One of the deputies was saying that when she went to get the “stray” out of the car, the dog was sitting on the lap of the passenger and was spread-eagled and straddled so they had a hard time removing her. When the family drove away, the dog went nuts and tried to chase them down then howled until they were out of sight.

She had been with them awhile, but no one apparently was to interested in her.

I heard my voice say: “May I see her?”

She was in an outside pen, surrounded by Pits and Pit-mixes. The other dogs were bouncing off the ceilings, barking it was pure chaos and she was in her kennel just shaking like a leaf in the wind. She looked so pathetic, her eyes locked with mine sent a message and then I heard myself say “I’ll take her!”

Neither the vet or the shelter can tell me what breed she is- the only distinct feature on her is the knowledge bump on her head that tells me she is some sort of hound. They called her a “Hospice Rescue” so she was “AS IS” at no charge. According to the vet who saw her, she could live 10 minutes, 10 days or 10 years. Apparently, when she was a puppy, she had earmites that were ignored and her ears are a mess. They are cauliflower ears and the vet said that she has shaken them so much, they have broke open and bled that there is nothing left for her to bleed out from. They are bright red, extremely painful and I am treating them holistically at the moment to try and give her at least some relief. She is super skinny, she has been here four days and already gained 5 pounds! They were calling her Pumpkin Pie, we call her Journey.

She has never seen a cat before and she watches them but not in a predatory nature. She walks kind of goofy- and she has scars all over her body as if she was somehow a bait dog? I don’t know her story, but I know her spirit and it is sweet. She has met Quincy and fallen in love with him as well as some other dogs that belong to a friend of mine. Her muzzle and face are gray, but her teeth are in really good shape, so I am wondering if she might just look old based on what she has been through?

This morning, I discovered when I took her out to do the feedings that she chases the flashlight on the ground much like a small kitten chases a laser light! Silly girl- She dances on her hind legs and the first time she met Mike, she danced in front of him then put her front paws on his wheelchair armrests and lopped him in the face. He was smitten.

Here she is on her first day with us-The kittens scare her when they run over the top of her in play so it is an adjustment period for all of us.