A Texas-Size Tale of Love

Having lost my previous dog, Honey, to heartworms (a rampant parasite carried by mosquitoes, especially in Texas), the next day I went to Mont Belvieu Texas’ neighbouring animal shelter in Baytown in search of another family member, as I had more love to give.

- Ashley Van Den Berg

We’d previously adopted three dogs from this shelter. Accompanied by my Mom, I was determined to get a puppy, as it had been years since I’d had one and there were plenty to adopt. But God had other plans.

I slowly walked by every kennel, and as I passed one specific kennel, this estimated one-year-old beautiful girl sat patiently waiting and looked longingly into my eyes. She didn’t move once but just sat looking at me. I continued on and didn’t say anything; my Mom passed by her as I was at the other end of the shelter, and she said, “Hey, what about this one?” I knew exactly which dog she meant. This dog had chosen us by the Grace of God. I adopted her, and only after paying the fee was I told that she was to have been euthanised two hours later.

FINDING THE RIGHT NAME

We immediately took her to the vet for vaccinations and an overall health check. Thereafter we brought her home and set her free in the backyard. At first she tip-toed around, and then, all of a sudden, she took off like a tornado and circled the ¼-acre three times in about 15 seconds, knowing she was home and smiling the whole time. Now comes the part about naming her – I always name my fur-babies after food items, for example Sweet Pea, Kanela (cinnamon in Spanish) and Honey, so I named this precious girl “Kahlua”... for all of an hour; not once did she respond to it! That’s when I tried “Beignet” (Ben-‘yā), with reference to my Cajun roots, and she looks like a beignet dipped in powdered sugar. She loved the name and immediately responded to it.

A HEALTH SCARE!