When Miffy left home to have adventures of her own in Vancouver (that's another story), there was an empty spot in my heart for a furry friend. I always knew I wanted to help another animal, but wasn't sure when. A month later, a friend invited me to visit Calgary Humane Society. We weren't expecting anything other than to visit some dogs. My heart hurt for some of the animals who were waiting for their furever homes. Things needed to change. I needed to be a part of that change. So that night I applied to become a Foster Parent. And a few weeks later, I took home my first foster animal, a 1 year old orange tabby cat. My heart was starting to feel full again, knowing that even just 1 week of providing care, I was making a difference.
On April 4, 2019, a few dogs later, I stopped by the shelter to pick up a terrified, nervous 9 year old chihuahua. This senior chihuahua had no name, no teeth and no family. The first night was definitely rough. It took a few hours for him to warm up to me, but would scream when I held him. He cried throughout the night, so you can say it was a tough day at work the next day. Slowly his personality started to come through. My heart ached knowing that after a few weeks, he'll be going back to be adopted out. I had no doubt that he would be adopted quickly to a loving family. But I wanted to be his loving family. So on June 20, 2019, after 3 months of foster, I can finally call him my boy.
That was the start of my triple foster-fail adventure.
Fast forward to November 11, 2020. Steve and I had just moved in to a house of our own. A house with a yard large enough to help another dog. So one day, as I am casually browsing the foster-support page, I see Bella. This stumpy looking senior chihuahua. Amazing. Another chihuahua! Of course we had Chapo then, so we were quite nervous that they wouldn't get along. So after a small meet and greet, we took Bella home that night. And just like Chapo, Bella never went back. She was officially ours on December, 30, 2020. Bella is a senior gal or loves belly rubs (hence her nickname, "Belly-Girl"). Unfortunately, with her age and breed comes with health problems. Treatment for Bella hasn't been the cheapest, but just like any parent would, we would do anything for this little girl now.
So after a summer of adventures with Chapo and Bella, we are back into our work routine. Until one day I receive and email from CHS asking if we had space for a small Yorkshire Terrier named Toby. And of course I said yes. I went after work that day to pick up the smallest, frail looking dog I have ever seen. Toby was just recovering from an eye amputation. He was scared, why and wasn't sure what had happened to him within the past 24 hours. Toby had the biggest transformation of all of the dogs I have fostered. He went from a tiny, frail dog to this confident, sassy Yorkie (he still cries and whines however!).
I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep Toby as I was worried that 3 dogs would be too much. But just like the other 2, Toby has made my life so much better. Chapo, Bella and Toby have taught me so many things. They've reminded me that I need to slow down and to stop to "smell the flowers" and that it's sometimes okay to be goofy.
My life has changed for the better thanks to Calgary Humane Society. I am fundraising to help support foster families and for other to experience what I did, because I promise you, it will make you a better person.