As the quote at the top of this page implies, we have started a new story with the addition of Meesha, a Lapitor (Lab/Pit). I thought at first it would be difficult, feeling like I had replaced Harmony because she reminds me so much of her, but she brings a new dynamic to our pack.

Meesha is a rescue from a hoarder and came with “baggage”. It’s the baggage that keeps us on our toes and reminds us every pup has their own personality whether by breed, litter number, or environmental factors.

For example, because Meesha spent the first few years of her life in a cage, her canine tips are wore down from biting at her bars. She also has back/hip problems due to that prison being too small for her. When we first read her story online, it was communicated that she was only around 3 years old. At our first meeting I noted her muzzle was grey, much like that of a senior pooch. But the vet says that she’s prematurely grey, to me that only reiterates the abuse she suffered.

Another one of our observations is Meesha wasn’t afforded the things that most dogs do naturally. She doesn’t know how to “mark”. That in itself is actually a good thing, except she will hold her bladder sometimes as long as 24 hours. She will hold #2 as long as 3 days. We were a wee bit successful in trying to recondition her. I thought it kinda funny that we had to reward her for going to the bathroom, LOL. She continues to improve, but can’t be left in the house unattended. We’ve found this conditioning the hardest to break.

AND she will eat/chew everything as if she’s going through a delayed puppy stage. We don’t dare drop a single thing or leave anything laying around for the fear of her eating it. She’s quick. We dropped a paper towel yesterday and it was gone in seconds. Yet she is the most delicate thing when taking food from our fingers. That big ole pit bull mouth will gently nibble a cheerio while Mel (Melody) would take your fingers off!

Her personality is just wonderful and it’s my understanding from her foster mom that it has just recently come out after months of nurturing foster care. She’s quite lovely. With the black of a Labrador and the single coat of a Pit, she is very stunning. And her eyes: I would have to say they’re the most gentle eyes I’ve ever seen on a dog, even Harmony’s.

It’s no coincidence that we all equate our fur-babies as children because they’re like kids who mentally never grow up. It’s as if they’re stuck at the human age of 4. That’s like having a preschooler for many years. With that said, I also recognize that any kind of abuse forever changes the adult human or dog. No matter what kind of abuse it was, the outcome is typically the same. Meesha challenges us every day. There’s always something that changes or pops up as a result of her earlier life.

Even with all of her baggage, I can see balance. She brings a center to our pack that we desperately needed. She shows us love and companionship. She plays with Mel as if they were born attached at the hip. She moans and sighs in approval as she lays her head in our lap.

Meesha brings our home, Harmony.

 

Melody and Meesha

Melody and Meesha