One Year With Our Birdie-Girl

I’ve always thought people who were obsessed with their pets were weirdos. It’s just an animal, for goodness’ sake.

Then we adopted Birdie.

On August 25, 2013, (and after months of my husband trying to convince me that we needed a dog), we brought home a three-year old, skinny, timid beagle-hound mix with dry skin and a saggy “mama-belly” flapping beneath her. It was clear that she had not come from the most pleasant of backgrounds. She hated car rides, water, and the feather duster, among other things.

In a short amount of time, however, she began to transform before our eyes- and with every breakthrough, I felt myself changing along with her.

These days, she leaps into the back seat of the car and hangs her head out the window, gleefully squinting in the wind. She b-lines it for the pond at the dog park to swim and pretends she’s one of the big labs. She’s learned how to sit, stay, lie down, and shake (ambidextrously, I might add). She’s strong and athletic and her coat is soft and shiny. Her amber eyes have a new life to them; they’re brighter, more engaged.

We are still working on the feather duster thing though. (Of all things?!)

I can’t believe it’s only been a year since we brought her home. It feels like she’s always been a part of our family. Most surprising of all, though, is how much I have absolutely fallen in love with this precious dog.

I like to rest my head on her belly when she’s trying to sleep and tell her I love her as she lets out a long sigh as if to say, “let me sleep woman!” We play hide and seek- a version of it anyhow- where we chase each other around until one of us gets too tired and plops on the floor in submission.

My heart swells when I think of my sweet, happy, and fearless Birdie. She’s becoming the dog she was meant to be- zigzagging across a field like a wild gazelle, stalking squirrels, rolling around in the dirt, passing out on the cool hardwood floor and snoring after a long walk.

She’s my reminder that love is transformative and love is freeing. It’s like God has allowed me to see – if only a tiny fraction – how he feels when he watches us live our lives that same way….fearless and free.

So here’s to many more years with our Birdie-girl- the doggie that turned me from a normal human being into one of those pet-obsessed weirdos.