It has officially been 1 week since we brought Sadie home from the shelter! Now that she is settling in and finding her place in our pack, I feel its time to share her story and how she made her way into our home. It all started many months ago when we decided that we wanted to rescue another dog and give Eva a partner in crime. We've meet lots of dogs and worked with some great rescues searching for the perfect fit. It was kinda like dating. We "dated" many dogs until we found "the one". Well, just like dating, "the one" came along when we decided to put a hold on our search (we were going to start looking again in the spring).

Innocently enough, we were walking into Petco last Saturday morning and the usual commotion was going on in front of the building. I am very fond of this commotion because it means available dogs are on display for adoption. Of course, Brian always tries to make a B-line to the door so he doesn't get stuck waiting for me to pet and kiss on all the animals. Fortunately, this particular weekend, the Girl Scouts were causing their own commotion by selling cookies right next to the adoption event. That was all it took for Brian to lose his B-line for the door (can you say Peanut Butter Patties?) and for me to land my eyes on a cute little 4-month old Lab-mix puppy.

When Brian came over to ask for four dollars in cash, I made my move. I introduced him to the black puppy and I saw a little smile creep onto his face. Hmmm...this is unusual. Most of the time I just get a sigh and an eye roll. We sat there and watched her play for several minutes and so many of her mannerisms reminded us of Eva. Brian finally pulled me away and we made our way into the store. Of course, the whole time we were shopping I was begging to bring home the little dog. Now it was time to walk back by the commotion as we left Petco. FAIL.

No, we didn't take her home right then and there. I let my rational reasoning take over and I knew Eva would have to meet her first. Brian *shockingly* agreed and we made an appointment (more like we set up a blind date) to have Eva and the puppy meet Sunday morning at the Lincoln County Animal Shelter.

The next morning, we got up super early, gave Eva a bath, and made our way over to Lincolnton. Eva and the black puppy finally got to meet. After 10 minutes, they acted like best friends. They were wrestling, playing tug-o-war, and just being goofy. It was perfect. The little puppy, now "Sadie", was invited to join our pack. I think Sadie was happy to accept the invitation.

Sadie was found as a stray when she was just one month old. Now 4 months old, she has spent 3/4 of her life behind the bars of a kennel in the animal shelter. Many people have asked why she wouldn't get adopted quicker since she is a puppy. My best guess is because she is a black dog and she is a victim of Black Dog Syndrome. Please don't laugh as this is something that really exists. Black dogs are doomed when they are brought to a pound because black dogs, particularly black labs or lab mixes, are euthanized at a horrifying rate at many pounds and shelters. People have a tendency to pass black dogs up for lighter colored dogs. Fortunately, Sadie escaped the fate of so many other black dogs.

Naturally, Sadie's initiation into a household with a pet photographer, is to have her own photo shoot. My fellow pet photog, Nicole from Blue Ruby Photography, gathered our equipment, loaded up the puppy, and headed out to Lake Norman for her first session. As you can see in Sadie's heavy eyelids, the shoot took place after a 4-day bender of non-stop wrestling and playing. After the session - and for about 30 minutes during the shoot - Sadie entered a play-induced coma.

Here is Sadie (maybe I should have named her something Girl Scout related?) before she passed out on us...

Sadie's Pet Portraits