Starting the Search

How will we know when we meet the right dog?
We started our search for a new dog by filling out an online application and looking at the pictures of available dogs on the Golden Retriever Rescue of North Texas site. The dog we were interested in was already going through the adoption process, but the president of the organization thought that Dakota (pictured) would be a good match. We made arrangements with Dakota's foster mom to meet at a nearby dog park. We loaded up Miss Moo for the big date. Dakota was a nice looking fellow, smart and good and all, but he was not very interested in us or Miss Moo. There just wasn't any chemistry or connection between us. It wasn't a bad experience, but it was disappointing. I know we will never find another Tabasco -- and we're not trying to. This encounter had me questioning if we were really ready yet. It also had me wondering how we will know when the right dog comes along.

Adopting

Have you ever adopted or rescued a dog?

Miss Moo, our Greyhound who looks like a Jersey cow, is a retired racer and was rescued by the Greyhound Adoption League of Texas when she was about five years old. She actually chose my husband, Guy, for adoption -- she leapt with joy the first time she saw him.

We adopted Tabasco from Stanley Marcus' former home, where his Golden Retriever playfulness had gotten to be too much for the 3-year-old boy of the family now living there. Tabasco was definitely a high-spirited, one-year-old puppy in a BIG body. We changed his name from Duke (after John Wayne) to Tabasco which seemed to fit his personality a lot better. However, for McKinney's Krewe of Barkus Mardi Gras parade in 2006, we dressed him up as John Wayne and he won the grand prize for the dog looking the most like the movie star he portrayed. With a little training, Tabasco turned into the best dog in the whole world.