The Quest For The Wire Fox: Part 5

 

 I'd have to say that in many ways, we are very fortunate. Pam and I were already retired when the pandemic hit, so we never had to make the awful decision of whether or not showing up at work was worth the risk. We did find like others, that suddenly being home all the time, made us bond more with our pets. The Perkins family has always had a lot of pets, and by circumstance, this summer found us with no dogs and no easy way of getting a new one. The last time I got a dog, it was a trip to the house of somebody that had puppies and picking out the one that liked us the most. That is not how it worked this summer.

I did have plenty of warning from friends that it was difficult to get a dog, unless I wanted a pitbull from the pound. I spent a lot of time looking and hoping to free some hapless dog from a prison, but apparently everyone else was doing the same thing. Meanwhile, Pam was sharpening her online skills, watching every puppy video and emailing everybody in the country that was breeding dogs. She finally decided that a Wire Fox Terrier, was a dog she would love, and it might just be possible to get one if we were willing to take a chance on a young couple that was having their first litter and drive over a day's drive through Protest marches and Confederate flags to get the puppy. 

That was the beginning of the quest, and now months and over a $1000 worth of dog supplies later, it had happened. Ollie the puppy and Bella, his mother, immediately melted whatever misgivings I had. Bella had that special trait that I remembered from our beloved Jack Russel dog, Princess. Our kids had grown up with Princess and she had this ability to do a standing jump that was unbelievably high. There used to be a pizza commercial that showed a pizza box on top of a refrigerator, and every few moments, a dog head would flash into view...a dog jumping up to grab the pizza box. That was our Princess, and apparently, the Wire Fox terrier breed had the same skill. Before I could even get to the front gate of the house, Bella was showing she could be over that gate and defend the house from me any time she chose.  

I came up and sat on the porch while Bella made sure I was okay to touch her puppy and Pam stood there smiling while Ryan, the suddenly nice young owner,  that did not seem at all menacing anymore, handed me Ollie the little ball of fur.

Suddenly, thoughts of robbery, the long drive, the things that could go wrong were all gone, replaced by visions of me and Ollie surfing, me and Ollie riding bikes, me and Ollie hiking. Sure, I'd let Pam spend time with him, while I was sleeping, but otherwise, it was me and Ollie. Then I held Ollie out to Pam, and I was second-best....again...