A Golden Story
 

     How does anyone begin to express the joy, laughter, feeling of contentment and pure love that comes from sharing your life with a golden retriever? Since I was a young child, I have always had a special place in my heart for animals of all kinds and I had quite an menagerie of animals. I had a pet goose, an outdoor dog, an indoor siamese cat, and indoor beagle, abandoned opossums (these weren't really pets just short time visitors) a rabbit, a chameleon, tropical fish, a turtle, and probably a few others I've forgotten about. I was always known for bringing home the stray dogs and cats. As expected I was directed by my parents to find a home for them quickly, which I reluctantly did. If I had my own way, I would have kept them all. With all these pets came a great deal of joy as well as heartache as I needed to say goodbye.
     Soon after I married at age 23, I convinced my husband we needed a pet. I made my way to the local animal shelter and found a sweet little beagle/cocker mix. Her name was Taffy and she shared many wonderful years with us. During the time that Taffy was in our lives we had two beautiful children who are now teenagers. Again I took in a few strays and found a home for two beautiful abandoned black labs we named Max and Midnight. I hated to see them go but knew our house and lives could not accommodate two puppies, two toddlers and an adult dog. A few years later Taffy left us and our house felt empty. Several months later I felt the need to have another pet and so begins my "golden" story.
     While searching the want ads in our local newspaper, I came across an ad for a golden retriever/yellow lab mix free to a good home. I immediately phoned the owner and set up a time to visit the dog. With my husband and kids in tow we made our way to our future beloved pet. Her name is Lady and a true lady she is.
     Lady has lived with us for the past nine years and through those years we have grown to love her more and more each day. She has provided us with protection from strangers, unconditional love, companionship and days filled with laughter. She is growing old now, at ten years of age and is very gray in the face. She has been a regal girl who has rolled with the chaos our life has offered her. She has stood by our side through three moves, learning to love each house we moved her too. Lucky for her though she has increased yard space each time. She now has 3.5 acres of land to roam.
     She has also accepted many new additions to our family (maybe somewhat reluctantly though). She welcomed into our home our golden puppy Charlevoix (Charlie) who is now four years old. With Charlie she discovered a different type of companionship than what her human family could offer. She and Charlie are best friends and spend all their time together.
     Lady was forced to accept another new golden puppy named Liberty who was blind. Lady somehow knew that this puppy was different, she loved and protected her through the few short months Liberty was with us. Unfortunately Liberty has gone to the bridge but she will live in our hearts forever.
     Sadie the "golden" kitten joined our home last fall. Lady has decided that Sadie is staying and she just needs to accept her. She may not always like her but she has fully accepted her. Sadie tries to get Lady to play but instead of getting angry she just moves away.
     Through Lady my love for Golden Retrievers has grown deeper than I could ever imagine. Charlie too has added to the love and commitment we feel for this breed. I have spent two years researching the breed for my masters thesis in order to learn as much as I can. We now frequent local dog shows and help with Golden Retriever Rescue.
     Our Golden Retrievers have enhanced our lives in more ways than I can find words to describe. Our children have learned compassion from the experience of acquiring a soon to be abandoned dog as well as the joy of owning a golden puppy. With each of these dogs comes the feeling of knowing you are loved more than anything in the world. They don't pick favorites and just genuinely want to love you and to be loved back. They are truly phenomenal dogs! I feel blessed to be owned by Golden Retrievers, purebred or otherwise. I am convinced that these special animals have given so much more back to us than we could ever begin to give to them. By following their example, it is my hope that our family can become as golden to others as our dogs have been to us.