my mom has achieved dog!!

Back in March, I talked about the drama of trying to get a small dog for my mom.

Update: Mom got her dog! It's a Havanese-something mix named Rosie that is small, precious, and spoiled to death.

(-something mix: yorkie is a possibility but still looking at similar dogs)

She also has increased the cat population of her home to five. We'll start with the dog drama.

So Mom had more or less was at 'resigned to never having a dog' and I was at 'I wonder what the interest rate on a loan would be on a loan and if the credit union would make me tell them I need it for a dog for Christmas' when I got a text showing Mom Holding An Adorable Dog.

Me: ??????

It happened like this.

There's a small animal shelter/rescue that is on one of the routes from work to home, and when mom takes that route, she sometimes stops by less from hope than undiagnosed masochism because they never, never have small dogs or if they do, ones already dibbed for but she can totally meet and bond with just in case the potential owner pulls out (they never do). Yeah.

But not that day. That day, she happened to show up when they were still doing intake on a group of abandoned dogs. All were found in not great condition (some had to be shaved straight to the skin later their fur was so matted) and somehow, among them, she spied Her Dog.

Mom, probably pointing at it like Lady McBeth on Broadway: DIBS.

(My middle sister, who met her there: I really thought she was kidding.
Staff: [no idea but I really wish I knew])

Anyway, procedure includes a week to find the owner, but owner not found, the dog was hers. Let me say again; this dog was sighted before intake. When it was still out back being evaluated. How she even got back to staff-only I'm not entirely sure, but I'm assuming they were so used to seeing her around that her appearing back there simply didn't register.

Or, more likely:

My mom doesn't know this--how she missed it, I have no idea--but she has a frighteningly effective talent for being able to appear she belongs anywhere she wants to be and no one really--caring, even when they really really should. Granted, the back area of a dog rescue isn't the Pentagon, but from experience, hospitals, retail stores, if the door is not locked, she does it. If the door is locked, someone will let her in. I love my mom, but she is not supernaturally charming or exude an aura of 'do things for me' or 'authority'; my best guess is it's kind of a limited folie a deux thing; if it doesn't occur to her that she shouldn't be there, everyone who encounters her just kind of agrees.

Example: back in the eighties, for those alive then, The Year of the Cabbage Patch Kids? Remember they were nearly impossible to get anywhere? My mom got three at Easter of that same year by dint of wandering into the back of the store, overhearing a truck of them was coming, and just--hung out until it arrived. When the boxes were opened, they just--let her go through the boxes, pick three (one brunette, one red-head, one blonde), paid for them at one of the registers (I assume the ones farthest from the billion other people stalking the store, Tickle Me Elmo was fucking nothing compared to The Year of Cabbage Patch Kids, being shanked was not out of the question) and brought them home.

(She doesn't use it often, but from what I can tell, that's only because in general, if she's aware she shouldn't be there, she won't try and therefore nothing happens.)

Anyway, they checked the dogs over while she waited, and Her Dog was thoroughly trimmed (not shaved luckily) and as it turns out, it was goddamn adorable. Personality was nailed at 'incredibly sweet and gentle', 'loved everyone', 'wanted to be held and petted like a lot', and adored my mother on sight and did not leave her lap until she had to go (yeah, they handed over the newly intaked dog for her to cuddle like right there See above). Basically, this dog could not be more goddamn perfect if it was made to order for her.

A week later, she took Rosie home, and after a blissful night of bonding, took her to the vet the next day and not surprisingly, perfect dog. It's on a monthly treatment for something mild (I can't remember but to be fair, when she told me I was still boggling the turns of fate) but otherwise--perfect. damn. dog.

Just saying. It's kind of suspicious.

Now, what we've all been waiting for:



Right, now the fifth cat. Which I visited to meet Rosie, it was like this:

Mom, surrounded by cats and single dog: This is Rosie!
Me: ...there are five cats.
Mom: Yes, I can explain that.
My sister, who lives with her: Wait for it.

From what I understand, it's the neighbor's cat from three houses down that walked in the door and just--doesn't leave. It apparently goes home like--never--and the neighbors do know but have done nothing. It was taken home at least once but that totally did not take, and if you're curious, keeping a cat out is about an order of magnitude harder than keeping one in.

Worse--much worse--it just sits on the front patio looking miserably patient with the vagaries of fate and cat ownership (if anyone can really say they own a cat) and will do this for a straight day without seeming to move and staring at anyone coming or going. My sister confirmed this actually happened and obviously, everyone's will broke after a day of that shit.

It's a good cat; does not jump on or destroy furniture or anything else, pretty chill, but it can't be denied, two cats you have 'a couple of', three cats is 'a few', four is 'some', but five, you're at 'clowder'. She has a clowder of cats.

Seriously.

So, dog achieved and a clowder of cats. What a time to be alive.

Comments

[timespirt]

Puppy is cute. Looks annoyed having her picture taken. We had 5 cat's once upon a time. LOL

[ilyena_sylph]

Yay dog! I am glad for her.

But yeah, that's a clowder.

[lilacsigil]

Your mother has secret superpowers! I'm old enough to remember the Cabbage Patch Kids frenzy, and she got *three*???

Rosie looks adorable and I'm sure she will enjoy being part of the clowder.

[seperis]

EIGHTIES SURVIVOR! Yes, you can get this.

When I tell the story, people are like, oh, they were just nice employees, I've done that before for xxxx, and I'm like, nnoooo, you don't understand. I mean, they could be nice, I never met them, but during Cabbage Patch Mania the back inventory was treated like it contained nuclear weapons, no one got back there without a badge and employees coming out would check for customers first because they'd get interrogated on DO YOU HAVE ANY LET ME LOOK PLEASE I WILL DIE OR KILL EVERYONE OR SOMETHING, it was wild. This was a time of rioting in stores; employees were not even allowed to talk about if/when there would be deliveries, people would be there waiting for the trucks. I remember the six o'clock news had pictures of that kind of thing; it was disturbing.

I mean, at least during tickle me elmo there was ebay and the internet to give options and diffuse tension, but back then, it was the store or murdering doll owners and the second was probably not out of the realm of possibility. Stealing them from their arms leaving the store or out of cars wasn't exactly unheard of, after all.

[lilacsigil]

I distinctly remember the first girl in my school to get a Cabbage Patch Doll, and she brought it to school in its box so we could all admire it. Her mother had an inside connection to a toy shop in the city - none had yet filtered out to our area - and every girl in the school came to have a look at it while it sat in state on the bench under the tree. (I never actually got one, but I was super uncool, so I didn't think I would, if that makes sense.) So your mother's feat amazes me!

[krait]

A cute pup! Looks like she will need regular grooming, or else be very hairy.

Working in an animal rescue, I can confirm that your mum's approach is pretty much how it works for everyone - they just happen to walk in at the exact right moment, when either we've literally just put the dog on the adoption floor, or the minute after the first applicant called to cancel their application, or even seeing someone bringing the dog in to surrender it. We get multiple calls and walk-ins per day asking whether we have small dogs, and mostly we don't - when we do get them, they fly out the doors within 48 hours unless they have immensely complex health issues.

The Unintended Cat Acquisition sounds about right, too. :D I've had numerous cat adopters tell me that they've had cats all their lives but never adopted one before; cats always just sort of showed up.

[green_grrl]

That dog is goddammed adorable. Congrats to your Mom on another successful working of her magic! (Cabbage Patch riots *ugh* People got trampled.)

[ratcreature]

Rosie is a very cute dog.

I remember the Cabbage Patch Kids hype, though I don't think it got as bad here as in the US. And I never had or wanted one. I think my whole family agreed that they looked stupid.

[kass]

A clowder of cats! I love that word. Thank you for the word and the link.

[gwyn]

Good for her! She sounds like quite the badass rescuer, and the doggo and kitty sound so very lucky to have met her.

[nic]

Your mom's super power is pretty amazing! :) And I love how she seems to rescue animals.

[grammarwoman]

Congrats to your mom for the acquisition of Her Perfect Dog. :)