I'm a ten year old, stunningly handsome blonde labrador who grew up with a single family and their children. As the years moved on, my family found themselves overwhelmed by day to day activities and had less and less time to spend with me.
One day, while lying on the kitchen floor, I heard my Mom talking to someone on the phone. The gist was...I needed a new home. Panic? Oh yes I did! But as the month grew longer and nothing happened, I settled back into my role in the household.
Then, suddenly one day the magic words..let's go for a ride were spoken. I love rides and was quickly packed into the truck for a sunny days drive to Minneapolis. When we got there, we pulled up to this huge building. The sign said "Senior Center" and for a ten year old dog, that seemed like the place for me. As we walked through the automatic front doors, my eyes went wide, my tail started wagging and that was just the beginning.
We were met by so many people as we came in. To our left was a sitting area and a grand piano. Ahead of us a large balcony and more people gazing down. To the right was this wonderful glass container on wheels that smelled of heaven and butter - they call it a popcorn machine. I was instantly attracted to that, but somehow I new that it wasn't something I could get into.
It took less than an hour for me to decide that I was at the right place, at the right time, in my life. Thank goodness the staff and families that live there thought so too! I now have run of the halls, an elevator that chimes just to let me know I can get on and about a hundred people that think I'm the bomb. I have an outdoor play area with a plate on the wall that I just paw and a door opens. I have also acquired a job, which I'm very serious about. It is my responsibility to accompany the night nurse as she makes her medication rounds.
At ten years old, I have more energy than most senior dogs, but I'm told I inherently know the difference between the frail residents and the not so frail. I'm very careful to make sure my tail or paw is not in the way of any one of my beloved new people. I also have a new cat friend...well, friend my be pushing it - she seems to like to stalk me and I'm pretty sure the hissing isn't a "hey, come play" message - but we'll get there!
