Annie
(aka Annika)

Hello, as I sit writing this on the left of my chair I have my ever faithful companion Shelby, an Australian Sheppard. In 2009, her best buddy, Ashes, a Dalmatian, that lived next door passed away and she began to mope, hanging her head low as she walked around with a sad look that engulfed her entire body. Our cat, Theo, was not a playmate and Shelby was depressed. I began searching for another companion for Shelby in November of 2009. My son and I would spend our weekends visiting the local shelter and even adopted a male Aussie puppy for about an hour. He was fine around us but when we brought him home he became extremely aggressive to both Shelby and, our cat, Theo. The search continued.

I stumbled upon the Dalmatian Rescue site and began browsing, thinking about getting a Dal pal for her, as she had been friends with two so far in her life when I stumbled upon this adorable picture of this black dog with just a little white on her chest, who by the way is laying next to me on my left right now. She came for a visit and in early February we adopted her. She was this shy, frightened little girl when she first came to us. She was afraid of everything. She would run away from the slightest sound of a plastic shopping bag crinkling. She was afraid of the neighborhood children and when she went outside, Shelby had to go with her. She took a long time to warm up to my son Evan but eventually they became friends. We took our time with her and after awhile everything worked out.

She is still shy around strangers at first but warms up to most of the visitors to our home, she doesn’t run away to the sound of plastic bags any longer, and she has no issues going into the backyard alone. We take frequent walks, weather permitting, and when the neighborhood children come around she will lay down and let them pet her. They go to the groomer together, and she and Shelby have two new Saint Bernard friends next door. She loves to clean ears and will attempt to clean our cat’s ears from time to time. Theo tolerates the cleaning briefly and then with his claws out will take his paw and gently but firmly put it on her forehead so she knows he has had enough.

With family coming to visit from time to time over the last year she had learned that we belong to her now and we are one happy bunch together. As we enter our fourth season together, we are looking forward to the start of our second year and know that we will have many happy years together. We cannot thank you enough for bringing us together.

Best wishes to all for a healthy, happy, and safe holiday season.

The Bier Family
Cheyenne, WY

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