One Sunday afternoon on a very cold day, January 2018 I got an unexpected call. I was at home babysitting my 18-month-old twin grandchildren; my husband had gone to the local pet store to get supplies for his fish tank. He had been chatting with the people that work there - with 4 dogs and 1 large fish tank he is a frequent visitor - when a lady came in carrying a small white puppy. She said she had “found” him, gave him a bath, but couldn’t keep him because her child was allergic to him. She said if she couldn’t find someone to take him she was going to dump him. It was one of those rare very cold winter days we have here in Texas so my husband called me. With 4 dogs already, and having never had a puppy I was very concerned, but told him not to leave the poor thing if no one took him. He came home with this little ball of fur clinging to his shoulder and he was hooked. We had a small kennel but it needed to be cleaned so we put him in a laundry basket. The ladies from the pet store gave him some canned puppy food, the poor guy was starving. The next day I took him to the vet I work for; he was 6 pounds and estimated at 7 weeks old. Last thing we needed was another dog, so we called him Pup Pup so he wouldn’t have a name we got attached to, and had him vetted. We had some damage from Harvey and we had just gotten new carpets replaced 2 weeks before, and I was not thrilled with a puppy. I found a rescue group that would take him, but my husband was concerned about not knowing what would happen to him, and would not let him go. So Pup Pup joined the rest of our rescues. He is fearful of strangers, but is getting better. He is now a 35# boy who loves his daddy, and keeps the older dogs active. He has been a joy and a trial but we wouldn’t trade him for anything. Unconditional LOVE comes unexpectedly sometimes.

Joan Schaefer
MISSOURI CITY, TX