b'To An Incomprehensible Act,With Gratitude.by Lisa AlexanderIDONT KNOW YOU AND ,YOUR GOD But,getthis:Eventhoughshedidnt just has to be someone who knows andWILLING ,YOU WILL NEVER KNOW ME . have a microchip or collar, they figured lovesWheatens,whodoesntmindTwelve years ago you brought a pup into out who owned her. Isnt that amazing? workingthroughcomplexmedicalyour life. That was about the same time Wheaten terriers are so unusual in these issues, who has a soft heart for the oldwe were newly embracing three of our parts and shed been around your small ones. I cant explain it, how I recognizedown;thesamekindSoft-Coated town enough that people knew where her, how I recognized it was ours to do,Wheaten Terriers. Thatsaboutallwe she used to live. but I did and Gordy stepped right uphave in common. They contacted you, We have your behind me. My wonderful, endearinglyYesterday,apictureofyourpup dog! doting husband; such gratitude.showed up on my news feed. She looked Yousaid, Idontwantherand Things happened fast then, becauselike this: held to that, even after they told you the Sue made it happen. Within an hour itchances of her being adopted, given her was all arranged. The shelter is closed onadvancedageandpoorcondition,are Sundays and Mondays, but Shannon saidslim and zero. tomeetherat8a.m.andwecouldCanttakeher,yousaid.That springher. Shesshuttingdown,shewholenewjobthingandleasingan said. Any longer, and I think she willapartment that doesnt allow pets. And, dieofdepression. Again,toShannonoh, that girlfriend, who was supposed to and Sue; huge gratitude.betakingcareofyourpupinyour Heres what that sweet pup lookedabsence,hasnowjoinedyou,andshe like when we first saw her:doesntlikedogs. Well,thatallmakesperfect sense. Perfect.Now, in case this isnt already clear,I find your actions incomprehensible not a little bit; a lot. Incomprehensible isthe nicest word I could hit upon andreally, its too nice of a word for this. Ican hold to the boundaries of that wordthough,becauseofthegreatandwonderful acts of mercy that your actspawned, acts that crack me open withgratitude. Seehowsheisntreallystanding,Her hair is matted to her body, her ItstartswithShannonfromthe butcrouching,andavoidingtouchorears and eyes are dripping infection and animalshelter,whoknewyourdog eye contact? She is lost inside herself,swollen shut. Maybe you recognize her, wouldnotlivetheweekwithouta inside her own fear. Doyou know whatmaybe you dont. Twelve years old. Most miracle. So she started one. She found else Shannon said? That this is the worstof the way through her doggy life, and theWheatenRescuegroupherein intake theyve ever had. Not the shred-youdumpedher.Well,actuallyyou Floridaandsentthemamostearnest ded up Pitbulls or starving mama dogs.abandoned her. Call it coincidence, but and heartfelt plea. I have a copy of it and Nope, your dog. Years of neglect, theyshe somehow ran away when you were I will keep it forever, with gratitude for said. Years of confinement in a crate toopackingandthenyoumoved,out-of- her kindness. Then there are Melissa and small to stand up in. Untreated skin con-state,andneverreportedhermissing. Sue,partofthatrescue,whoputthe ditionsresultingininfectedopenThree weeks later, she couldnt take her noticeoutaboutyoursweetpup. wounds. Total negligence in grooming,feral life anymore and in the unrelenting Complexplacement:Sheneedsa barely able to walk with the matting onrainstormsthathituslastweek,she foreverhomeandsomeonewhowill herbody.Pusoozingoutherearsbraced herself against the porch door of take her sight unseen.andeyesfromchronicuntreatedearanunknownhouseandwouldnot Therescuegroupcommittedto infections.move. adoption fees and vet bills for the person Am I boring you?She was brought to a high-kill shel- who might step up. It was the kind of Wedidthepaperworkandtheyter, because thats what happens in these situation where you really, really hope gave us medicine to carry her throughcases. Her intake report is catastrophic. that someone does that; steps up.There until we could get her to our vet. 54THE NEW BARKER www.TheNewBarker.com'