Contest Entry : Punky

This contest wouldn’t be half as fun if I couldn’t share some of the amazing stories I am getting. Quite frankly, I don’t know how we are going to choose. I want to encourage those of you that have not entered, to at least start your entry. That is how I work. I can’t sit down and write something out in one sitting, I have to organize my thoughts and come back to it a little bit at a time each day. So at least start your entry because the deadline is coming up fast!

[ Don't forget to enter! ]

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PUNKY
by Kristie Lugiewicz (Florida)

Do you see that face in those images? I love it. It makes me smile. She reminds me of the simple things in life. She reminds me that life isn’t so bad after all. That I should stop and smell the roses (because really? She does stop and smell the flowers!). She just reminds me to love.

A lot of times, when I look at her smooshed-up pug face, I am also overwhelmed with a sense of sadness. I am sad to think of the life she had before she found us. I am sad to remember the condition she was in when she moved in. I am sad to think that she still flinches at times, when I go to pet her. I am sad to think that so many people mistreated her, that she was neglected to such a horrible degree.

We have had Punky for two years now, and we are constantly seeing new sides of her as she gets more and more comfortable here. The first five years of her life she had already gone through three homes and a quick stint at the shelter. When we got her she was so very sad looking. She would freeze whenever we would pick her up, as if she had never experienced being picked up for a snuggle. She would never give her belly up for a rub. And play? I don;t thikn she was ever given toys, so she had no clue what to do with them when they were presented to her.

Since the day we brought her home we have been fighting a non-stop battle with her ears. Punky was so neglected that I believe she had never had her ears cleaned in all of her five years. Ever. And they needed cleaning. You could smell her ears, even when staning feet away. They were worse than I ever imagined possible. She is deaf, and though I have heard numerous stories as to why she is deaf, I question, as does my vet, if the true reason is due to the infections. She has suffered from vertigo. there was a time when it was so bad that I actually thought that she was dying; she was unable to even stand up. We rushed her to the emergency clinic and discovered that it was because the infection had gone so deep into the ear canals. Long story short- for two straight years her ears have been in constant treatment. She hates it. Sometimes I think that she must wonder what she ever did to have to endure this terrible torture (because clearly, as every dog knows, ear cleaning is pure unadulturated torutre), yet somehow she goes along with it. She remains a happy-go-lucky pugger that will still do a happy dance when the ear flushes and drops are done with, hoping for a treat.

She has been a part of our family for almost two years now and the progress she has made is incredible. Slowly, she is coming into her own. I think she has finally realized she is home. She has given us so many firsts; spontaneously breaking into full puppy play with her sister, finally showing her belly for some yummy scratching, prancing, and finally playing with toys. She has brought so much into my life, I feel ridiculous sometimes with the amount of love I have for her, but she has me under her spell. She has made me believe that just as we have soulmates, we can have soul-doggies too.