My name is Trout and I'm a 12 year old male golden retriever. My dad got me when I was 6 weeks old and we've had a wonderful life! My mom recently had a baby and said I had to go. I really don't know why - I'm a real sweetheart and would never hurt the baby. She said it was too much trouble having a baby and a dog. So my dad took me to a shelter. I overheard the worker there telling dad that I would probably not get adopted and would be, well, killed. He was crying but he said he didn't have a choice. AND HE LEFT! I will never get that.
But this story is on its way to a happy ending. The good shelter people knew who to call: Adopt A Golden Atlanta. They were there within one hour and I was in a foster home right away. I'm told that I certainly don't act 12 years old. I am playful and love affection. I am house broken (of course!) and know some basic commands like sit. My tail wags pretty much non-stop and when I get really excited it twirls like a helicopter blade. I love other dogs and children. I'm great on the leash. I see and hear just fine. All I really need is a new family to love. I hope I get that soon!!
The lady at AGA told me about an Indian legend that says: "When a human dies there is a bridge they must cross to enter into Heaven. At the head of the bridge waits every animal that human encountered during their lifetime. The animals, based on what they know of each person, decide which humans may cross the bridge...and which are turned away."
Hmmmm. What will I do when I see my dad?
4 comments:
Now that I've picked my jaw up off the floor at how cruel someone could be ....
I truly believe what goes around, comes around. My golden was taken away from his original owner due to abuse and neglect, and now lives the life of Riley (hence his name: Riley!). That's our best revenge against folks like this. I wish I could adopt Trout -- but I'm travelling and two goldens might be too much for Grandpa! (plus his own)
Would I be a bad person if I wished a very very colicky baby (not unhealthy, just very noisy, sleepless, and fussy?) on this couple, especially the mom? HOW could she tell her husband to remove the dog he had for 12 years - and HOW could he do it? They deserve a lot of sleepless nights to think about it.
I also agree that the treatment of Trout was horrible, and I am SO thankful for AGA for rescuing him (and Beau, our wonderful AGA adoptee!). However, I think that we need to remember that our main goal here is to resscue these wonderful, wonderful dogs from less-than-loving homes and shelters. We need to be a refuge for goldens, where owners feel safe to turn in their dogs, not a group of spiteful volunteers who publicly judge and condemn them for their decisions. As dog lovers who take our responsibilities to heart, we are all sickened by the beginning of this story, but it's also important to remember that we want to encourage people to turn in their dogs to rescue where we can find them loving forever homes--NOT turn them in to shelters, or worse, keep the dogs in an unloving, unhealthy home because they are too ashamed or fear being publicly condemned if they turn them in. Kudos to AGA for their tireless incredible work, but it would be more wise to keep the comments about the admirable traits of the dogs and leave your judgement of the owners out of it. Obviously the guy had to choose between his wife's happiness and his dog's (sad and unfair, but that was the situation). He made the right decision giving the dog up (Trout would have been miserable being replaced by the baby); he just made the wrong decision by taking him to a shelter instead of AGA or another no-kill rescue. Let's educate, not judge and condemn!!
What will Trout say when he sees his dad at the bridge to heaven???
He's a golden retriever--so he'll say, "I love you and I forgive you. Come on in and join me for a game of fetch!!"
Luckily the goldens we rescue are much more kind and forgiving than any of us deserve.
thanks for reading our blog! this story is a great illustration of why it's so important to get the word out about our organization. surely this poor man did not know we existed or he would never have left his precious dog to die (not judging - that's just a fact).
we hope that by having a blog, a facebook page, an email newsletter, a website, ads, events, adoption days and more that we can continue to reach more people. please help us spread the word every chance you get! i'm sure this man would have much preferred to know that Trout was happy and loved, which he is.
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