Brodie
Back in late fall, 2018, I received a cell call from my sister saying, “I am doing some shopping in Kingwood and there is a business that is sponsoring animal adoptions across the street! You should come and check this out.” But I was working at the time and could not get over to Kingwood. So, she stopped there for me and talked to the rescue/adoption people and asked for a phone number that I could call.
I moved to a new area in Northeast Houston in 2015 and I had no pets. But I did have a big backyard with lots of room for a critter or two to play in. So, I called and asked permission to come and visit the local adoption facility and to meet some of the rescues.
There was one guy, in particular, that was cute but quiet. He kept following the bigger dogs around the room. He seemed to like me and loved me giving him some attention and then he let me hold him. It did not take me long to decide that I would give this little guy a try and so I brought Brodie home and he has been with me ever since.
The person fostering Brodie was a gentleman named Mr. Christmas and told me about Brodie’s rescue. He saw Brodie around some trash cans, running feral, in the rain. He tried and succeeded in catching him but also had to go to the emergency room to get stitches because Brodie feared his captor!
Mr. Christmas said he was matted and dirty. He had a front paw that had been broken and did not heal properly. He had BB-shot pellets in his neck and chest. And, despite his appearance and the fact that he needed medical attention after catching him, he brought Brodie into his home and fostered him through this local adopt-a-pet organization in Kingwood.
Brodie has come to love his home and yard!! He is a
happy, care-free little fellow who does his “zoomies” every day. He loves to eat and play hide and seek! If I have been gone and he hears the garage door opening, he welcomes me as soon as I come in with his stuffed “burger” or one of his “stuffed babies”!! Although I am retired, I still work part-time from home, and he joins me every morning in our office where he makes it his job to guard the entrance to my office. He stays there right with me until we are through with work for the day!!
I am currently the caregiver to a 92-year-old Mom with an advanced stage of dementia. When I take him to the assisted living facility, he lets all the little ladies bend over to pet him. And, when he sees Grandma, he “dances” for her and she just laughs and laughs!! And, when we leave the facility, I talk to him about poor Grandma all the way home!! It’s like he knows exactly what I am saying!!! Not only is he my pet and my buddy, but he is my emotional support animal – just not certified!!!
When I found the lump on his leg, I took him straight to the Vet. The first test came back inconclusive. The second test, however, positively identified the cancer. My heart was broken. The following week I made an appointment with the Animal Cancer Center in The Woodlands where we have been going for tests and diagnoses to ascertain the extent of his illness and to determine what needs to be done to extend Brodie’s little life. Hence, he will have an amputation. The good news is that the surgeon is sure that it is contained and, if tests come back the way they think they will, he will not need chemotherapy.
I cannot thank Dogslife enough for the generous donation toward Brodie’s surgery. The staff at the Animal Cancer & Research Center in The Woodlands understood what he meant to me and knew my finances were strained and they were kind enough to share the possibility of financial help through Dogslife. Brodie deserves this opportunity to get well, be happy and have a great life that he has left since the first half of his life was so sad and poor. And, yes, he will have to adjust to having a missing limb. I am going to be with him every step of the way to help him learn this new, physical way of life. And, in time, he will be able to do his own kind of “zoomies” and perform his own, unique style of “dancing.” My friend and buddy will continue to be very much loved and pampered – and he will still be here, with me…saying thank you is just not enough…
- Cindy Stevens (June 2024)