Shelby

Here is the story of how Shelby became part of our family-

Back in September of 2003, Ashley and I went to work on Kappa's homecoming float.  Everyone was required to spend 5 hours working on it, so out we went to a remote area in the middle of nowhere that we literally had to drive down a dirt road to get to.  I was not exactly the model sorority girl- I wasn't really in it 100% since I knew that I would be leaving Waco the next year for nursing school.  When I saw this poor little dog that people would call Angel, kind of a creepy name for a dog in my opinion, hanging around the float sight, I spent my time figuring out her story rather than working on the float.  She would crouch down whenever anyone got near her and would go to anyone with food begging for some.  The second time we went out there, it was starting to get cold outside and she was huddled in the corner of the airplane hanger where the float was being built.  I was worried about what would happen to her during the winter after the float was built and everyone was gone.  Well, Ash and I went back to our apt and got some turkey lunch meat to lure her into my car.  She was hesitant to get in but the turkey did the trick- she was starving!

Later that evening, Ash and I bathed her and then locked her in our bathroom just in case she attacked us in the night. :) We hadn't yet gotten to know her!  At this time, she would shriek if someone touched her ears, was deathly afraid of feet, and spent her life crouching down out of fear.  I'm pretty sure she had been abused.  I found a little later that she had heartworms but I got them treated, changed her name, and she officially had a home.

Well, over time we became best buds and she moved up from sleeping in the bathroom to the foot of my bed.  She LOVED car trips and was a great traveling buddy from Waco to Houston and then from Dallas to Houston and back.  Once I moved to Dallas, I left all my friends behind and started nursing school.  My roommate was gone a lot of the time so I was so thankful to have a dog to protect me and keep me company.

This picture was taken the Christmas after I got her.  She always looked like she was smiling for the camera!

 Once Bill and I got married, she had a new friend, Grace!  They didn't quite get along so great at first but eventually they got used to each other and then started chasing squirrels together.

The pups in our duplex in College Station

Suiting up for the cold winter

Hunting for squirrels...Grace would hunt and Shel would tried to copy what Grace did

Shelby's least favorite place in the world was the vet's office.  She HATED going.  She would get so scared that she would have to be muzzled.  Shelby was never aggressive towards me but she would be with some other dogs and  she made me nervous around little kids.  In the back of my mind, I was always really worried about how she would be once I had a baby.  I was really pleasantly surprised how well she did with Avery.  When I think back to her personality from day 1 to the her last day, it was completely different.  She became so much more trusting, loving, and reliable.

Shelby's favorite things in life were standing on her back two feet looking out windows, going on walks, eating, and riding in the car.  Her way of showing excitement was by jumping up and down on her back two feet.

Here are some pictures from over the years...

Sleeping

This was 6 months after I got Shelby.  You can tell that she's still a little nervous to be around Grace.  Bill and I look like babies!  It was taken so long ago that I had to scan this picture in.

This is a testament to how much she changed.  Here she is sharing a bed with King,  Dan and Lindsay's dog.   She would NEVER have done this when I first got her.

I will miss you Shelby!