The Animal Lady

The high today in NYC was 17 degrees. With the wind chill (which until a few years ago I still thought was called wind "shield" . . . don't ask. I thought it had something to do with how fast the wind hit a car's wind shield when you were going 60 miles per hour. I don't know where my mind comes up with these things,) it felt like 2 degrees. Yes, you read that correctly. TWO degrees. I woke up, looked at the weather, and immediately thought about all the poor dogs that are in a shelter in my neighborhood that needed walking. I knew that most of the volunteers would probably cancel due to the weather, so I put on my warmest sweater and my furriest boots and trekked the 25 minutes to the shelter. Thank goodness I did because the shelter desperately needed people.

The first dog I walked was the sweetest little . . . uh, I don't know what type. Horrible with names. Well, he was just the sweetest little guy. I took him on an hour walk which included a lap around a park. When we got to the park I let him play in the snow for awhile because he was just the happiest most giddy kid ever. He acted like he had never seen snow before and was so excited. And then it happened.

I let go of the leash.

Completely by accident. I'm still not sure how it happened but OMG. My heart hasn't pounded that hard in a long time. As Max went crazy, unleashed and free in the snow at last, superhero E took over. I couldn't let this guy get away. He could get hit by a car. He could end up back on the streets. He might never find his forever home. I flung the poop bags on the ground and ran through that snow like I've never run before. "Max! Maaaaaaax!" Looking back, I must have looked like a crazed schizophrenic person. I felt my knees about to buckle when he stopped and looked back at me with a little smirk. And then he kept running. He's a fast little guy. I finally got to him and collapsed in a heap on top of him. Half relief and half exhaustion. I then proceeded to cup his face in my hands for the next five minutes saying over and over again, "Max, never do that to me again! I was so scared! I thought I lost you forever!"

That was dog number one. I had only spent an hour with the furry guy and already wanted to adopt him. I watched longingly as he was put back in his kennel when they brought the next two out. They were really small. The girl was named Edith and the boy was named Max. They've been together for 12 years, and when I say been together, I mean been together. As in, they were just in the newspaper because they just got married on Saturday. By a priest. Only in New York.

Well, Archie was fine walking around but poor little Edith was a hot mess. She hated all the loud city noises and was freezing her little paws off in the snow. Eventually I picked her up, wrapped my scarf around her, and carried her the rest of the way.

That was dog number two. And I wanted to adopt her and her handsome husband as well. Volunteering at the shelter is going to be such a rewarding experience. But I am going to have to be very very careful not to become one of those people who have animals in every nook and cranny of their apartment. Forget cat lady. I'll be the animal lady.

Oh, and PS- little Archie and Edith have had a lot of drama as of late. A crazy dog napper actually kidnapped poor little Edith just a little while ago! This was the fifth dog that this lady supposedly kidnapped so she's in biiiig trouble with the law now. That's what she gets for trying to tear true love apart!