Shatzi's Story
All my reading events are based on a special guest from an animal shelter. That was not different for the event held on March 11, 2020, at Friendswood Public Library in Texas. So Shatzi came along. She was that special visitor sitting between a pile of my books and the main characters—Rocky and a Girl with a Curl. Shatzi enjoyed all the attention she received from children (Rocky was not jealous because he never finds people immune to his charm). Although some visitors were considering offering Shatzi a permanent home, they didn’t feel strong enough about that and she came back home with me, her foster. Only a week later, social distancing became the norm, and all my other events got canceled. So there we were–a house full of rescue pets and Shatzi. As expected, ‘Girl with a Curl’ fell in love with her, Rocky didn’t mind sharing his food, toys, and bed, and our cat and guinea pig were occasionally unsure about a new squeaky bark throughout the house.
Those three little words—- I love dogs! S.M.
Chances of Shatzi being adopted soon were very slim and I didn’t even consider taking her back to the shelter. She was a good spot anyways: running with a child whose energy levels were at their highest ‘out-of-school mode’, politely avoiding a cat that was much bigger than her, and patiently waiting for Rocky to wake up from his naps with tug-a-war rope in her mouth.
Exactly a month later I received an email from someone who was very interested in meeting Shatzi and adopting her. Although the shelter recommended a virtual ‘meet and greet’, I knew that she had a better chance of being adopted if she could share her cuteness in person. So I drove to a nearby park and met with a young couple interested in adding a little girl to their family. As predicted, love at first sight happened there. For me and my family was hard to say goodbye but we were happy that Shatzi was going to a good home. Even so, as I have done with my other fosters, I told them to keep me updated and to contact me if for any reason they change their mind. I just didn’t want her to be returned to an animal shelter and labeled as ‘owner surrender’ as I knew those dogs get more chances to end up on euthanasia list than getting adopted. I am glad I have done that because two weeks later they informed me that dog was having allergic reactions to something even doctors couldn’t figure out what. They were not sure if they were going to keep her.
