But, before I get ahead of myself, I should probably explain that although there isn't any single incident that turned my heart cold to canines, I have never found much to love about them. As a kid we always had a dog, but they were generally big, ugly, smelly, and sometimes scary. I steered clear of them at all costs. Needless to say, I never "bonded" with a dog.
But, just so that you don't think I'm prejudice, I don't like most animals enough to have them as a pet. At some point in my life I silently vowed to never own a pet.
That vow broke 3 1/2 years ago with our pet fish, Killa. He was a hearty fish that managed to live through very few tank cleanings and sporadic feedings. He lived longer than most even. Lucky him.
Then, about a year ago Ezra started praying for a dog. It was cute, but we brushed it aside. Shiloh and I joked that we'd give him a dog when he turned eighteen as a "going away" present.
Around July, however, we started seriously considering a dog when we realized that we were definitely done having kids, and foster kids may still be many years off. Ezra wants a brother so bad, so we thought perhaps a dog would "fill the void".
Thus began a research project on my part to find the best breeds, ages, genders, etc... I started scouring local shelters for an older, calm female dog that didn't shed. We came really close to adopting a Vizsla/Boxer last month, but it wasn't to be, so we moved on...
Then, on my birthday a few days ago we were perusing Animal Kingdom in the mall (in a casual search for a breed we love), and we saw the cutest little cocker spaniel puppy. This particular variety of dog was NOT on my list because even though I have always loved the way cocker spaniels look, I believed their shedding was beyond my limits of love. Still, we took her in a room to hold her because, well, if felt like a fun thing to do at the time, but I was NOT prepare for what would happen next...
You know that starry, slow motion effect that they put in films to denote two people falling in love? Well, that same pricking of my heart occurred for this little puppy. We spent about 45 minutes in that room with her, and didn't want to leave. Both Shiloh and I bonded with this dog in a matter of minutes and it just felt like she was part of our family already.
Given the intensity of my dislike for dogs prior to this event, I was blown away at my change of heart (and Shiloh's). So, it didn't take us long to decide that we would go ahead and purchase her... no matter what the gouge-my-wallet price.
And that's just what we did. Meet Magnolia:
