A funny story:
Years ago, before I was married with kids, I wanted to get a dog. I searched high and low for the perfect dog, since I’m allergic to some breeds. I settled on a non-shedding breed such as a poodle, Maltese or Bichon Frise. I didn’t really expect to find one of the more exotic breeds at the pound but I did think I could find a poodle. I started calling local shelters to see if they had an non-shedders. I finally called this one pound about 40 minutes away and asked if they had any small non-shedding dogs like a poodle or even a Bichon Frise. To my surprise the man said “Yes, we have a Bichon right now.” I rushed up there and found the cutest little guy I had ever seen. I told him I wanted the dog and they put the order in. They had to have the vet check him over and then they would release him to me early the next week.
I was really excited and asked my dad to go with me to pick him up. We wrapped him in a towel just in case he had fleas and took him directly to Pet Smart for grooming. I filled out the paperwork as best I could and told them I had just rescued him from the shelter. Then I went home and anxiously awaited their call telling me he was ready. The call came and my parents and I went over to pick him up. When they brought out this dog I was amazed. He was beautiful, fluffy and white. Just a little angel. We proudly put his leash on him and headed out the door on that cool October evening. Note that it was evening in October so it was getting pretty dark early. For someone to really get a good look at us they had to be pretty close.
Right as we walked in the door my phone began to ring. It was Pet Smart telling me the police were there because I was a dog-napper and I had to return the dog immediately. Apparently the dog’s owner had seen us leave with his dog, but instead of telling us it wasn’t our dog he went in and called the police on us. I was rightly confused but we complied and brought the dog back. There was a very angry man standing outside Pet Smart. He was mumbling things under his breath and cursing at us. When we went inside we found out that this man was the actual owner of the lovely little dog they had give us, name Daisy. She had mistakenly been given to us because we told them our dog was a Bichon when we came to pick him up and they just grabbed the wrong dog as there were 2 Bichons there that day. The man was furious and ranting, wanting to know “Don’t you even know your own damn dog?” Well, actually sir, no I don’t know my own damn dog as I just rescued him from an animal shelter and brought him directly to the store to be groomed! But are you such a coward that you couldn’t even stop us and ask us why we had your dog when you saw us leaving on that very dark October evening? What did you think we were a professional dog-napping gang and my 70 year old father was packing heat?
When we finally got everything straightened out and they brought my scruffy little muffin out I couldn’t have been happier. Not only did I have a great story to tell, but I also had the sweetest dog in the world. My co-workers, having heard the story, posted Wanted posters around our building with my picture on them, announcing to all that I was a known dog-napper and that I may be packing!
