My Pound Puppy CeCe

"Anything I've ever done that ultimately was worthwhile...initially scared me to death."

I'm not sure who said it, but she must've rescued a pound dog.

My beloved dog Blazer died in June, and my home hasn't felt complete since. So I decided that, even though I could never love another dog the way I loved Blazer, I could at least open my home to a dog in need. But when I brought CeCe home from Animal Services, things weren't all sunshine and roses. Like so many pound dogs, she had a very rough start to life, and it showed.

At only a few weeks old, CeCe was dumped at a rural shelter in Ohio, where she spent most of her young life in a state of stress, surrounded by other unwanted, troubled dogs. Luckily, between the kind soul who runs the shelter and took her in, and James at Toronto Animal Services, she arrived in Toronto in January as a 5 month old puppy, scarred both physically and mentally, and scared of almost everything and everyone. A few hours later......I arrived and took her home.

The first time I took her to the dog park and 2 puppies tried to play with her, she turned on them quite aggressively, and I thought, "Oh crap. I've made a huge mistake." So the next few weeks were spent working on training: meeting new dogs (hey - they can be friendly!), meeting new people (hey - they give me treats!), walking all over the city, and getting used to all of the scary sights & sounds. Eventually, she began to blossom, and the puppy within began to come out as she discovered friends and toys, and enjoyed a calm, loving and stable home. It wasn't easy, and it was a lot of work, but she is the BEST puppy I could ever ask for, and an absolute lovebug. And smart as hell! She already knows "sit", "down", "stay", "shush", "crawl" and "rollover." She's sweet, gentle, and intuitive, and she has the best puppy stink I've ever smelled. Even the cats are starting to forgive me for bringing a puppy into their home....

I didn't think I would ever love another dog after my Blazer died, but this wriggly little creature is worming her way into my heart, kiss by kiss.

If anyone reading this is thinking about adopting a pound dog, please remember that the first few weeks might be difficult, but if you stick it out, the reward is limitless.

To see this post and a link to more photos on the Toronto Animal Services blog, click here: http://iwantapounddog.blogspot.ca/2012/02/update-on-cece.html