Virginia Beach with Lucy

When we rescued Lucy from the shelter at the end of September, we decided to make her an Emotional Support Therapy dog.  We have a wonderful letter from Samantha's therapist convincing anyone reading it why it is necessary for Lucy to be with us.  We also have seen first hand the wonderful effect Lucy has on Samantha and do believe she does a great job taming Sam's emotional outbursts.

During Spring Break we decided to do a quick overnight trip to Virginia Beach and bring Lucy with us.  Why not?  There is a first for everything. 

Having Lucy with us for the trip was going to be either a disaster or amazing.  There was no middle ground.  We were exposing Lucy to so many things where typically a dog is not expected and we had no idea how she was going to react.  I truly believed that Lucy would be an absolute angel if she had the ability to be with us wherever we went. This was put to the test and then some.  We took Lucy to a hotel, multiple restaurants, the beach, a dolphin watching boat tour, and generally walking around and in the shops.  I can't forget to mention we even attempted a surrey ride with Lucy riding in the basket up front. Additionally, she endured the car ride on back to back days, with the drive back home a full 2 hours longer than it should be because of traffic.

I am delighted to report that Lucy was PHENOMENAL!  She was so well behaved and acted like she has always been a service dog. Even Jeff found himself praising Lucy for her stellar behavior and said she was the best behaved all of us.  It was hard to not complain on the drive back when we were sitting in major traffic.  And it was hard to not complain when we were rocking back and forth big-time on that 90 minute boat ride.  Did we hear any complaints from Lucy on either of these?  Nope!  Not a single peep.  She went along for the ride and was happy to be included on the fun.

Lucy got lots of compliments from those who saw her in action.  Everyone asked if it was ok to pet her.  Of course!  She loves people.  She brought a smile to many at all the places we went.   One gentleman looked at her and said, "Thank you for your service."   :)

Our family felt complete with all of us together.  It was our first time visiting Virginia Beach and it is nice to know we can return. 

She is posing for the camera!

Look at her smile!! 

Hanging at the restaurant during lunch.

Watching the sunrise!

Lucy doesn't like thunder.

Monday night we had a thunderstorm.  It kicked in full force around 3:00am.  How do I know this?  Because its about the same time I also discovered Lucy does not like thunder.  Not even a little.  I believe she was experiencing a panic attack.  Her anxiety level was sky high.  She kept running to all of our bedrooms to check on us.  It was a continual circle running from Ian's room to me/Jeff's room to Samantha's room.  She'd jump on the bed, get close to our face, make sure we were ok, and then run to the next room.  Wash, rinse, repeat.  It was an especially amazing display given that Sam's bedroom door was fully closed.  I am still not sure how she managed to open it.

At first I thought Lucy had to go to the bathroom and was trying to get our attention.  It was when I opened the back door and motioned for her to go out, she froze in place.  No way, no sir, she wasn't stepping foot outside.  So I walked out on our deck and told her to come.  She still wouldn't budge.  I quickly figured out the thunder was frightening her.

We went back upstairs and she crawled in bed with me.  Yes, Jeff was there too, but he was mostly asleep.  Lucy was panting so hard and she was too excited to lay still.  She had an important job to do and had to keep checking on all of us to make sure we were ok.  I closed Ian and Sam's door and held her tightly until she was finally able to settle down and go back to sleep.

Aw, my sweet dog.  Just when I think I can't love her any more than I do, she goes and has a reason to really need us.  Who knows how traumatized she'd be if she was still living in a shelter or with a person who didn't take the time to comfort her and work thru her issues in the middle of the night?

I feel we are lucky ones who get to take care of her.  I've lost a good night of sleep before for much less worthy reasons.  We love Lucy.

Life with Lucy

Could we love Lucy anymore than we already do?  I am not sure!  She is fabulous.  And so wonderful to be around. 

I am so curious as to her background and called the SPCA in VA where she was before coming to the shelter we discovered her at.  All they could tell me was that she was a stray, picked up by a family and brought to them.  She was at the SPCA for 3 months and no one came looking for her.  It was there they spayed her, gave her all her shots and got her ready for the transfer to FOHA (Friends of Homeless Animals).  They took a guess at how old she is and thinks 2 years of age is as accurate as they are going to get.

Based on her lack of training (no idea how to walk on a leash, doesn't know any commands), I wonder if she was on her own for a long time.  And she has a cut on her ear that has since long healed, but it looks like she got into some kind of fight.  Poor thing.

I feel so good about our journey to rescue.  We saved her life.  And in turn, she is saving ours.  I love seeing the kids interact with Lucy.  They've been desperately wanting a dog (so have I!) and Lucy's presence has been almost magical.

Lucy sleeping with Ian.

 

Introducing Lucy Toppall

I am delighted to announce we've added a new member to our family...Lucy.  Lucy is a very sweet  two year old Lab mix.  We brought her home last Friday from an animal rescue organization in Aldi, VA.  It feels like she has always been with us.  And after just 5 days, I can't imagine life without her.

Lucy is a rockstar. She is simply amazing.  I am not sure entirely sure what the past 2 years were like for Lucy as she has no training whatsoever.  She is terrible on the leash and doesn't even know what the word "sit" means.  It's truly sad that no one spent any time with her.  We are working to change all that.   Sometimes I see her give us a huge smile and I think she totally gets it that we were meant to be her family and she ours.   I really don't know who rescued who more. 

Sam thought she had taught Lucy how to play fetch, but upon closer inspection we discovered Lucy had Sam running after the ball each and every time.  Ha!  We then had to teach Lucy AND Sam what to do.  Lucy does a pretty good job now going after the ball and bringing it back. 

She loves to snuggle.  Which is a good thing, because we love to snuggle with her.  And she has the cutest little snore when she falls asleep.  The kids are loving it that she wants to sleep in their bed at night.  This is a brand new thing to fight over...who gets Lucy in their bed?  We've been alternating nights. 

I'd say Lucy has me wrapped around her finger pretty tightly.  I am so ridiculously in love with her.  So is Sam and Ian.  And between me and you, I do believe Lucy is growing on Jeff.  She is a pretty fantastic match for our family.