Just Come and Look
One of my favorite pictures is from quite a while ago.
As a mother of a three-year-old and owner of a newer home, I was happy with having no responsibility for a pet, especially a dog. I did not miss brushing the carpets of hair, hairballs in the kitchen and baths, and, of course, the wonderful duty of cleaning up dog poop.
When I lived at home we always had a dog. My first one was a chocolate lab named Ginger. Then my long-term (growing up with) dog I had was a black cocker spaniel named Double Trouble. So, I was very familiar with the joys and problems of owning a dog.
One Sunday afternoon Art and his rabbit hunting buddy (Danny Leach) who always went rabbit hunting together (and Danny’s Beagle). Art came home that afternoon all excited. He said while they were hunting they came across a kennel that sold Beagles. “Just come and look at them. If you don’t like them we are not obligated to buy any. I just went to show you how cute they are” I never actually cared for Beagles as they always seemed overweight and I didn’t care for their short hair. I finally agreed to see these pups knowing that it would just be an activity to appease Art.
We decided to name this puppy Penney (after J.C. Penney where Art worked). She had all the right markings, and we all fell in love with her even though she was a spitfire. She had a mind of her own and seemed to be very intelligent. She was not allowed to go upstairs, but I often saw a cute little nose sticking in the doorway while making beds.
We had this pup for six months when she ran out into the road and was run over. I thought my heart was going to break in two.
Well, now it was my turn to say “You have to go to that Kennel and see if they have another pup for us.” They did and Art was able to bring this puppy home. When he put her on the floor I said, “Is that a beagle?” This pup was all dark, and chubby with not the usual markings I am used to seeing for a Beagle. Since we were stuck on the name Penney, we didn’t want to dishonor our first pup by using the same name, so we named this one, Rettschlag’s Copper Penney.
We had this Penney for 16 years and loved all that time with her. Neighbors would love to watch Lisa and Penney run through the open fields near our house, the dog constantly running off with Lisa’s hat.
Pets can never replace other pets, but I heard the saying, “If you get another pet when you have lost one, that is an honor to the lost pet showing you loved the experience of owning a pet to want to do it again.”
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