Lucy

So a couple of weeks ago, Drew called me to tell me that KCCI had a news special on about 40 dogs that had been rescued from a home in Southern, IA.  They were all at a rescue shelter in Clive and he wanted to go take a look at them.  We have been talking about getting a dog for about 3 months and he really wanted it to be a rescued dog.  I told him to go check them out and give me a call if he found one.  Well one found Jules.  She fell in love, the dog fell in love and it was all over after that.  Drew showed up here at school a couple of hours later with the new addition to our family.  We named her Lucy that night and got started on potty training her and getting her to listen to us.  She was a very good and mild mannered dog. 

The next day, I noticed that my eyes were itching.  I didn't think much of it, but it got worse that night.  Then we noticed that Jules had the sniffles and red streaks on her cheeks the next day.  By the following day Jules could barely get out of bed.  She was miserable.  Coughing, itchy eyes, scratching at her throat, streaked face and rubbing her nose constantly.  I knew those signs well.  That is exactly how I am around cats.  EXTREMELY allergic.  :( 

So, Drew called the shelter back.  They said that they would take Lucy back no problem. So we had to tell Jules....That was probably one of my hardest days with Jules.  She cried and cried.  She was devastated.  Thankfully as soon as Drew took her back, another family was interested in her.  That made Jules feel a little better.  She is still sad and gets upset sometimes, but she realizes that we did it for her health.  My mom has researched some dogs that are good with children with allergies, so we are planning on going to see a breeder of that certain breed and letting her play with the puppy for an hour or so, then coming home to see how she does and if she has any reaction and then go from there.  If anyone has any recommendations on dogs that are good for kids with allergies, let me know. 

In the meantime, Drew has cleaned our home like I have never seen him clean before.  Anything for his baby girl. I am pretty sure all of the dog hair is gone and out of the air - I mean it's been almost two weeks, but he is still a cleaning machine.  And I am not complaining! :)

Here are a couple of pics I snapped of Jules and Lucy that first night.  They bring a little comfort to Jules as she latched onto Jules right away.  Really praying that if we are able to get another dog down the road, they have a connection with Jules like Lucy did!  :)