Meet Emily!
My Christmas Present (to myself)
I have been given the best Christmas gift ever--Emily Louise! She came into my
life in October--and, this is our story!
First, let me say that she’s lying here beside me, on her futon and of course
she’s touching me—a paw is on my leg! She is a super-loving dog and I cannot
imagine why anyone would not want her! I was really surprised that she had not
been adopted before I met her. I am so thankful as she is truly a gift from God.
I am so blessed to have her living with me, or should I say I’m blessed to be
living with her?
Recently, I moved into a one-bedroom apartment after living in a house with 20
other people then having roommates for the next 2 years. Needless to say, it has
been quite an adjustment. I realized that my apartment was a little too empty,
and at the same time I
knew that I didn’t want to fill that emptiness with a roommate. So, I had the
“brilliant” idea of adopting a cat from the shelter. Well, thank goodness my
father talked some sense into me: he convinced me to take more time to think
about the responsibilities of an animal. He knew (and reminded me) that whenever
I move out of this apartment that I am going to want a dog instead of a cat,
because I’m more of a “dog-person.” He really got me thinking and I started
analyzing my schedule, habits, etc., to see if there would be any way I could
adopt a dog and make it work for both of us. An ex-boyfriend of mine has a
Doberman and I fell in love with her sweet personality. I remembered how
“low-maintenance” she was and realized that if I could find a dog similar to
her, that I might just be able to make it work. At that moment, something told
me to look up “Doberman” on the Internet; I wanted to see if there were any
Dobermans in shelters nearby that I could adopt. Of course, the Doberman Rescue
site is listed near the top and I visited the “Dogs for Adoption” page. I
suppose that was the defining moment when I lost my heart to Miss Emily. She had
a striking similarity to the last Dobe I knew, and really caught my eye. The
description had to have been written just for me as it included the phrases:
“low-maintenance” and “stress-free.” I thought it was too good to be true:
there’s no way that any dog could be as wonderful as the last one I knew.
Curiosity got the best of me, and though I knew it was too late to do anything
else but fall in love with another Dobe…I emailed the Rescue! I counted down the
days until I was able to meet her, even though it was less than a week it seemed
so much longer! It was a Wednesday, and I was so excited—and nervous, hoping
that she would like me! Of course, she was a little shy, but warmed up quickly
and we got along wonderfully! I sat down with her foster mom, discussing my
situation as far as school, work and my hectic life. I wasn’t sure I was going
to be able to be a good “mom” to her and just hoped that it would work out.
Ellen and I went over the pros and cons of adoption, and all of my concerns. She
was so helpful and gave me the encouragement I needed to go ahead and adopt her.
Another member of the Rescue came over and did the home visit the next evening!
The last obstacle I had to overcome before getting her was to have her approved
by the apartment office. Dobermans at my complex are a restricted breed and have
to have an interview before they are approved. Well, she passed with flying
colors: the manager begged me to adopt her and told me that she wanted to see
Miss Emily every day if she moved in with me!
The day after the home visit I was able to take her to her new home. The first
thing she did after checking out the place was to “claim” my futon. It has
become her security blanket ever since! She runs and curls up on it anytime
she’s in trouble or is scared. In the beginning, she stayed on it if someone new
was in my apartment. However, she didn’t growl or intimidate them in any way—in
fact it was the exact opposite, she was quite shy and submissive. She was simply
adjusting to her new environment and new friends.
The first morning she was here, I awoke to her slightly nudging me; she did not
try to get in the bed, and was very polite about waking me up. (After all, the
alarm was going off and I would have been late to work if she hadn’t come to get
me!) She had even put on her best smile—showing all of her teeth. It could have
been more than a little unnerving, but Ellen told me that she likes to smile in
the mornings and when she’s happy! Thank goodness I knew!!
In these past 2 months, I have had so much fun getting to know her personality
and watching her come out of her shell more and more every day. She was very
loving when I first got her, but since then, she has become so much more
affectionate! She’s adjusting beautifully and I
have
been so amazed with her and her antics. To give a few examples, she enjoys
taking my stuffed animals and carrying them out into the living room. My shoes
consistently appear on the futon with her and if I am gone when it’s dinner
time, she will remind me, again politely, by neatly laying a few pieces of trash
out beside the trash can. I tend to believe that she likes to move things to
where she thinks they should be! Why shouldn’t a big white polar bear be in the
middle of the living room? A Taco Bell wrapper looks better on the floor than in
the trash, right? (Please note: it was not torn up, just set out where I could
see it) Lately, she’s started smiling not only in the mornings, when she’s
happy, before her meals, on command if a treat is involved, and when she knows
she’s about to get into trouble! I suppose she knows I love seeing her grin and
is hoping for me to cut her some slack for her mischievous behavior, i.e. a
stuffed animal has suddenly appeared in the living room and just happens to be
missing a bit of fur!
She’s no longer afraid of meeting new friends--sometimes she screens them for
me. One of my friends had to ask permission for her to let him in the door. She
was quietly sitting in the way staring at him. It was quite funny, and now she
won’t leave him alone whenever he’s here. She ignores me and sits by him waiting
for attention. She tends to be impressed by politeness and it seems to be a
major quality for her to like one of her new friends! I guess she likes knowing
that she’s the queen of the house and that he asked her—not me, for permission
to come inside!
Many of Emily’s new friends cannot believe that she’s a Doberman! Her natural
ears, loving and non-aggressive personality does not fit the normal Doberman
stereotype. She sure is setting a good example for her foster siblings. She has
even won over two of the girls at the office who are extremely frightened of
larger dogs. Emily has helped them overcome those fears! They are no longer
scared of her at all and actually look forward to her daily visits! Everyone who
has met her has fallen in love with her and she even has a list of babysitters
now. It’s a little backwards in that they have asked me if I would let them
watch her for an afternoon while I’m at work. They don’t want to be paid, they
just want to spent time with Emmy Lou. She regularly goes to the neighbors’ to
watch everything from MTV to Sunday/Monday night football. Of course, they have
given her a special place on their couch!
My Emily has added so much value to my life and has taken care of me as much as
I have taken care of her! She makes sure that I get out of bed every morning
once the alarm starts beeping. Every once in a while, she’ll let me sleep for a
few extra minutes, but she knows that I need to be up!
I could not ask for a better dog. Not only did the Rescue match me up with a
wonderful dog, but a companion who is now my best friend. She is perfect for my
personality, lifestyle, living arrangements and me! I would not have found the
perfect dog for me at a shelter or breeder! The foster parents get to know these
dogs very well and can match them to a perfect “forever home.”
Emily and I highly recommend this organization to anyone looking not only for a
wonderful dog, but a lifelong companion and family member.
Thank you Doberman Rescue of NC for bringing such a wonderful addition to my
life, I will be forever grateful for my Dober-angel, Emily Louise.
--Kristen in Cary, NC
Back to "Success Stories"
Page last revised:
07/02/2007 08:49:45 PM
