French Invasion?

Has a beloved creature ever invaded your heart?

Our family seemed to always have a pet or two around. From White Shadow, the German Shepherd, to various chameleons and painted turtles we brought home from the county fair (UGGG — why was that ever a “thing”?) to Ginger the cat. There were others and I can honestly say that I was never 100% smitten with any of them until a shy and abused spaniel walked into my life.

Unbeknownst to me my sister decided that, during a difficult time in my adult life, I needed a dog to love. After researching different breeds then following up with local availability, one of her leads took her to a King Charles Cavalier spaniel breeder that turned out to be less than reputable. Many of the spaniels had their vocal chords altered so they didn’t have much of a bark. The breeder was operating this “puppy mill” in a residential neighborhood and did not want to attract attention from the neighbors. My sister was absolutely repelled by the conditions there and literally fled the scene in utter disgust. But, the further she drove away, what she had seen compelled her to turn the car around. She is intelligent and strong and what rose up in her was akin to a godly vengeance. In a moment a plan of attack and rescue was formed—Special Ops if you will. The image of one particular poor creature would not escape her mind. He had dirty matted hair, seemed extremely timid, and was pushed away from the food bowls by the rest of the hungry pack. With that vision in her mind she turned the car around, went back to that horrid place and purchased that one poor creature. Using all the cash she had on her, not wanting to write a check that would give this criminal her contact information she bought his freedom.

Departing this covert puppy mill she anonymously notified the local animal authorities and hopefully got the place shut down for good.

But she rescued Bailey first! She bathed him repeatedly herself recalling how black the bath water was from the poor thing’s filth and neglect. He was beautifully clean and sweet smelling when she surprised me with this nervous little bundle with the red bow around his neck. Yes, that dog invaded my heart and then some.