About a year after the death of my dog, Cinnamon, I decided I needed to get another one. I like Golden Retrievers, so I wanted to adopt one from a rescue. My local pound and humane society didn't have any goldens, and the local golden rescue only had one dog who didn't show any interest in me. I contacted the Golden Retriever Rescue of El Paso (GRREP) and they had several. After talking with their director, Connie, we decided there was one that would be a good match named Sasha. A couple of weeks later I made the 200 mile drive down to El Paso. She had me look at several dogs who were being fostered in Las Cruces, NM as well as some in El Paso. Of course, I wanted to take them all. When I got to Connie's house she had several foster dogs there, including Sasha. She showed me Sasha and then showed me Sophie, who was 3 years old. Sophie and I had an instant connection! It turns out we also have the same birthday! Sophie had been surrendered by her original owner because that person was having some mental difficulties. I adopted Sophie and asked about adopting a second dog, one I had seen in Las Cruces. Connie said she'd be happy to get me a second one, but that I had to wait two weeks so that Sophie and I could bond. Connie called me a couple of weeks later to say the dog I was interested in couldn't be adopted out due to a medical problem, but that she had another dog she thought would be a nice match. So Sophie and I drove back down to El Paso to meet Jaden, who was two years old. He had been found wandering the desert outside of El Paso and was skin and bones when they found him. Sophie and Jaden got along fine in their first meeting, and I adopted him. That first night they didn't get along. Sophie didn't want him coming near me. The drive back up to Albuquerque the next day was a bit tense, but once we got home they started playing together and have been great friends ever since. We love to hike, and on our first hike together Jaden found a patch of snow and began rolling in it. He was so joyful that I couldn't bring myself to interrupt him. It was obviously a great thrill for him after his time wandering the desert. To this day he never passes up a chance to roll in any snow he finds. Sophie developed allergies about a year after I adopted her, but we have that under control. And Jaden developed Cushing's disease a few months ago, which we've started treatment for. We still hike, do two walks a day, and spend time cuddling on the couch or floor. Sophie will turn 11 in a few months and Jaden will turn 10. We celebrate Jaden's birthday on the day the rescue took him in, which is the day before Sophie's and my birthday. They're the best friends anyone could ask for and they're wonderful family members. It's true that when you rescue a pet, they rescue you, too!

Randy Lantz
ALBUQUERQUE, NM