Hopey-on-a-Ropey

Hope came into my life December 14, 2004. I had received a phone call from my father, stating that one of my gordon setters had been dropped off at a humane society in Bellevue, Washington. Later that day I drove to the humane society to pick up the gordon. When I walked down the aisle to identify my gordon I also say the dobie puppy, she was very cute, and I immediately fell in love with her. I called my mother and step-father to see if I could bring her home, they said she had a better chance of adoption there (it was a no kill shelter) then at our house since it was christmas time. So I hung up and filled out the paperwork to get my poor old gordon setter bitch out of there. The whole time I couldn't stop thinking about that dobie bitch. So I called my mom again, this time I begged finally after a little delibration they said 'Yes!' I was so excited!! So in the back of my 4 door car I put both the gordon and the dobie and drove home. To this day I still think it is funny that they both laid down and slept all the way home as if a load had been lifted off there little shoulders. The gordon bitch went to some people that already had one of our gordons, and they wanted to take on my old girl, she now lives on the lake and lives the good life. As for the dobie bitch, she still lives with me and I wouldn't trade her for anything.

When I adopted her she had some weird name I couldn't even pronouce let alone spell, so we renamed her 'Hope' and the joke was that we HOPED to find her a new home. Four days after I adopted her, my very first dobie bitch, Queenie, (and the love of my life) died suddenly of Spleenic Torsion. We did everything to try and save her, including surgery, but sometime during the surgery the blood stopped circulating to her body and she died on the table. I was devasted, the dog I honestly believed would live forever was gone. For people that have dogs that mean everything to them they know exactly how I felt, my everything was gone. She was my protecter and friend. She lived at college with me, and went everywhere with me. So with Queenie gone, I still had this puppy that I had just adopted. After all I had been through, I latched on to Hope, she had to stay now. So three years laters here she is. I really believe she is and was God's gift to me, they say he always has a plan, well I think he does, because my little Hope on a Rope has the exact same cowlic down the back of her neck that Queenie did. I think it's God's way of always reminding me of Queenie.

Hope is the love of both Anthony's and my life. We often joke that Hope is his dog now, but she still sleeps on my side of the bed. She has been through so much with me, including moving across the country to be with Anthony. She means so much to me, but I have learned that dogs are not immortal and you have to cherish every moment you have with them and you always have to have HOPE!