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Growing up, I never had pets. My introduction to pets was the guppies that I owned when I was single and living in Toronto. My husband, Rick, on the other hand, grew up on a farm, had a Great Dane, two German shepherds and other animals so he was well aware of the responsibilities of having a pet.
We got married, had a couple of children, and became the typical busy family. No dog though; just a couple of hamsters over the years. Every year, our daughter Kim’s Christmas list included “a dog.” I would, now and then, say to Rick, “We should get a dog.” But his answer was always an unequivocal “No.” I did want a dog but we both worked outside the home and I just didn’t feel it was right to have a dog alone all the time. In the spring of 2016, our daughter Hannah, who had been looking at the Humane Society website, somehow talked us into heading over there to look at rabbits; specifically, a bonded brother and sister. An hour later, we had adopted two five-year old rabbits. They are cute little things, but they never would be the cuddly, let-you-pickthem-up pets. Again, the girls started asking for a dog and, now that we had rabbits, Rick’s position was an even more impassioned “NO!”
Fast forward to the weekend of March 14, 2020, the start of a surreal and unprecedented time for our world. I can remember this like it was yesterday: Hannah was looking through dog adoption sites, I was sitting beside her, and Rick was watching TV. We saw a few cute dogs, my daughter looked at me and said we should apply, I looked at my husband and said, “If we are ever going to get a dog, we should get one now.”
We figured that both of us would be working from home for a long while, and even when this was over, our work permitted us to work from home alternatively. My husband’s answer? “Let’s try and see what happens.” We applied for a rescue dog, went
This pandemic dog isn’t going anywhere
through a battery of questions and interviews and in the end, it was decided that he might not be the right fit for our family. Then came Xochi (originally Julio) a twoyear-old Mexican mutt. There was something about him. We completed an application with a rescue organization that brings stray dogs from Mexico. Julio had arrived in Canada on March 15, the last group of rescues to arrive before things shut down, and was adopted shortly thereafter. His new owner chose a new name and called him Xochi. Unfortunately, his owner developed some health issues making it impossible for her to keep him, so she made the tough decision to give him up after three weeks. It was important that the adoptive family be an active family. We had several interviews and it came down to two families. After three long days we were told that we had been selected. Three weeks later, on May 18, the four of us drove two hours to Kingston, Ont. to pick up the newest member of our family.
It’s been more than a year since Xochi joined us and, I know this is a cliché, but we can’t imagine our lives and home without him. Our girls, now 17 and 19, can’t get enough of him, Rick of the “tough exterior” is quite the softy with Xochi. I never imagined my husband to be the kind of guy to get up from his chair and go put a blanket on his resting doggie. I also never imagined us having hilarious conversations, pretending to be Xochi (dog owners, you know what I mean!). Xochi is happiest when his people are all home and his morning routine is to go look for everyone before he starts his day. The rabbits aren’t too sure how they feel about him, but he seems more intrigued by them than anything else (not that we will leave him alone with them in case he has other ideas). From what we understand, and from pictures we have seen, he had a tough first few years of life. We are amazed, however, at how well-trained and well-behaved he is. He just loves to run and play and to be with his people. From the beginning, recall
(having him come to us when we call him) and boundaries were our biggest challenges with Xochi, which is not surprising as he was a street dog. As he continues to develop his trust in us, however, and we better understand him, we can see major improvements. He is training us well.
Xochi’s presence makes us feel as though it’s all going to be okay. Among other things, the pandemic has taught us to embrace the simple things, not sweat the small stuff and just enjoy what we have. We are learning to think like a dog: “Best day EVER!” n