When I first saw a picture of
Ethel (pictured on the left) on the Dalmatian Rescue website, her big brown eyes looked so sad.
But when I read her brief bio, I understood the sadness in those eyes.
I was touched by those eyes, which stayed in my mind. But I kept thinking
we can’t get another dog now. Yet those eyes just kept coming back
to me. I knew we had to help her and to teach her not all humans are
cruel. My husband and I discussed adopting Ethel for several months. The
big question was what would be the impact to our 10 year old Dalmatian,
Jasmine, who was treated like a queen since she was 4 months old? Would
she be too jealous to accept another dog in our home? But those sad eyes
still haunted me and I knew we had to give Ethel a forever home.
When I first saw her at the Indianapolis airport, she was probably one
of the most pathetic looking dogs I had ever seen. She was so thin you
could count all of her ribs; her little doggy waist could easily fit
between my thumb and forefinger. She had sores of various sizes and
stages of healing too numerous to count. Those sad eyes looked at me as
if to say what is going to happen to me now? But above those sad eyes
was a very distinct lipstick print on her forehead where Pati Dane had
kissed her before putting her on the plane. I made a promise to her then
that the only person we would ever allow to hurt her again in anyway was
the vet, and then for medical reasons only.
The first night that we brought her home, she and Jasmine curled up
together at the foot of our bed. I knew then that these two dogs would
work out there issues and I knew I had done the right thing.
It took Ethel a few days to feel comfortable enough to eat all of her
food. Now she eats like a chow hound and you can no longer count her
ribs. Although, she still maintains her svelte waistline. Her sores are
mostly healed and her hair is starting to grow back. She is playing with
toys and can usually be seen carrying a little pink stuffed pig in her mouth.
When one of us comes home, she runs around in circles, tossing her pig in
the air, catching and then shaking it. Eventually she will drop it at our
feet as if giving us one of her priced possessions. She even has Jasmine
playing with toys again which she hasn’t done since our cat passed
away 3 years ago.
Now I can't even imagine not having Ethel as part of our family and those
sad eyes don't look sad anymore. She now looks quite regal, sporting a
pink collar with crystal hearts and a pearl necklace with black beads and
Swarovski crystals that matches her sister Jasmine's. We wanted to make
sure that she knows she is a very special doggy too!
