In the beginning....
I believe in fate or destiny or things happening for a reason - all that good stuff. It is the only explanation I have for searching on Kijiji for a hay baler and instead ending up with a pair of beagles. With my chin in my hand contemplating the array of old balers on the system and wondering how on earth I go about dealing with any of this, the words basset hound popped into my head. As an adult, my first dog was a wonderful Basset Hound called Maude. Together Maude and I conquered the world in my '72 VW Beetle. Boy we had adventures! Maude and I hiked most weekends in the Cdn rockies. We struggled up switchbacks, scooted past bears and even rode out a tornado in our canvas tent. While hounds are definitely an acquired taste (a friend of ours on his deathbed told my husband how much he had always hated our dog), for me Maude was always there and stoutly willing to do the craziest things with me. Obviously the need to have adventures with a carefree being overwhelmed me as I looked at metal farm machinery and suddenly I was scrolling through pages of Basset Hound puppies.
As a first time user of Kijiji, I noticed the postings got older as I scrolled through the pages. Never wanting to do the norm and always looking for that character, I went to the very last posting. Pair of 9 year old beagle/basset crosses. Brother and sister who could not be separated. No picture. The posting was a year old...Who on earth would want that. However, there was the word FREE and I knew that that word alone would serve to divert my husband's attention when he returned from his trip to find two more dogs in the house. Not having a clue how all this worked, I called the number listed. Next thing I knew I was on the road to have a look at this pair after telling the kids I was going to pick up some groceries. Much to my delight, it was all getting rather strange.
The first time you spot someone and the words "oh there you are" pass through your mind, you know that something magical, mysterious and much bigger than you is going on here. There was nothing cute about the sight that greeted me. One was fat, one was skinny. They jumped and they howled. Their manners were appalling and their breath even worse. I could tell they went to the bathroom wherever they pleased. The lovely lady who had rescued them from their first appalling circumstances was clearly overwhelmed and the neighbours standing on the sidewalk anxiously awaiting the verdict of whether of the dogs would stay or go were all signs of BIG PROBLEM. Everything screamed back away, back away and then a voice quietly said "oh there you are".
The next thing I knew Austin and Daisy were in the back of my truck. While I drove home in a stunned stupor, Daisy attempted to chew her way through the milk bag I had bought on my way there and Austin had an anxiety attack. These dogs were going to be a lot of work. They were going to get my butt off the couch and my eyes off the TV. And they were going to be an adventure!
As a first time user of Kijiji, I noticed the postings got older as I scrolled through the pages. Never wanting to do the norm and always looking for that character, I went to the very last posting. Pair of 9 year old beagle/basset crosses. Brother and sister who could not be separated. No picture. The posting was a year old...Who on earth would want that. However, there was the word FREE and I knew that that word alone would serve to divert my husband's attention when he returned from his trip to find two more dogs in the house. Not having a clue how all this worked, I called the number listed. Next thing I knew I was on the road to have a look at this pair after telling the kids I was going to pick up some groceries. Much to my delight, it was all getting rather strange.
The first time you spot someone and the words "oh there you are" pass through your mind, you know that something magical, mysterious and much bigger than you is going on here. There was nothing cute about the sight that greeted me. One was fat, one was skinny. They jumped and they howled. Their manners were appalling and their breath even worse. I could tell they went to the bathroom wherever they pleased. The lovely lady who had rescued them from their first appalling circumstances was clearly overwhelmed and the neighbours standing on the sidewalk anxiously awaiting the verdict of whether of the dogs would stay or go were all signs of BIG PROBLEM. Everything screamed back away, back away and then a voice quietly said "oh there you are".
The next thing I knew Austin and Daisy were in the back of my truck. While I drove home in a stunned stupor, Daisy attempted to chew her way through the milk bag I had bought on my way there and Austin had an anxiety attack. These dogs were going to be a lot of work. They were going to get my butt off the couch and my eyes off the TV. And they were going to be an adventure!
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