Allan and I have shared a passion for Pitbulls for a while now. Mine started shortly after high school, with a rescue pitty who came through the Vet clinic that I worked for. He had a particularly hard four years on a reserve, and ended up in our care after being found laying in the snow, unable to stand. He had a bullet wound through his leg, along with buckshot wounds all over his side, and lots of bruising and swelling. In his weakened condition we were unable to give him an anesthetic while we treated him; so I was given the task of sitting with his head in my lap, and keeping him calm. It was almost instantly that he he seemed to realize we were trying to help him, and were not there to cause him anymore harm. He even wagged his tail and tried to give kisses through the muzzle as we washed out his wounds. We decided to keep him at the clinic until we could find him a home, and thus, he became my charge. Every morning as I entered the kennel, he would erupt into full body wags, and I couldn't do anything else before we said good morning. He earned a place in my heart through his strength and his giant heart, and I was both happy and sad to see him eventually find a home.
Allan had the pleasure of living with an extremely cuddly Staffordshire terrier when he went to school in Thunder Bay. So when we were finally able to get a puppy, we new exactly what breed to look for, and that we wanted to rescue.
I started doing some research and found that there were three rescues in the Vancouver Island and Lower Mainland areas: Respect-A-Bull, Hug-A-Bull, and Bully Buddies. We decided that we wanted a puppy since Steve is young too, and we thought it might be better for the two of them to bond. We also wanted to be able to train the puppy as she grew. So I started scanning the adoptables lists, and one day this skinny little freckly girl popped up on Respect-A-Bull's site. We thought she kind of looked like Dobby from Harry Potter, but she was adorable, so I applied the next day.
One of the things I liked about these rescues, is that you have to go through an approval process in order to adopt a puppy from them. There is an extensive application form (it took me two hours to fill out), which even included questions like; what food you plan to feed the dog, what is your fence made of, and how big a vet bill can you afford at once. If your application is approved, there is a phone interview, if you are approved after that, there is a home check. And finally, if you are approved for that, you get to meet the puppy. And if you like the puppy, you do a foster-to-adopt, which means the puppy lives with you for a bit, to see if it will fit into your family, and your life. All of this may seem a bit extensive, but I think it's important, and I wish everyone did this before selling or adopting out a pet. All of this is nothing compared to the commitment of owning a dog, and not enough people understand that when they adopt.
Anyway, at long last, we got to bring home our beautiful baby girl, Charlie!
If you're wondering why she's sleeping in most of her photos, it's because any other time she would just be a tan coloured blur.
She is a handful, to say the least. Pitties can be very head strong, and tenacious. But they are also extremely loyal, and loving... and SO cuddly. She loves people, and other dogs, and we're working on her manners, so she doesn't bull-dose anyone in her excitement.
She's intelligent, and VERY food motivated, and I know with the right training and socialization, she's going to be a great dog.
Oh, and her and Steve get along well for the most part. We're still trying to reign in that enthusiasm though!
