The Dog We Left Behind

Most of you know that we have dog, Junuh. He is a rescue dog who came to us with a lot of, well, baggage. We named him after The Legend of Bagger Vance--remember Capt Randolf Junuh who lost his swing? He was terrified of pretty much everything. He'd cower if you moved too quickly. His tail stayed tucked underneath him most of the time. We don't know much of history, but we're quite certain that his past owners broke him in spirit and body. Poor guy. In the couple years we've had him, he came a long, long way. He seems happy most of the time. Tail wagging. Loves to be with us. Loves Ella and is protective of her around other dogs and visitors. He's starting to have faith again in mankind.

When we decided to move, we knew it probably wasn't a good idea to take Junuh with him. If the flight over here didn't give him a heart attack, the traffic probably would. He doesn't seem much of a city dog. So we asked some dear friends, Bryan and Tara, if they'd be willing to foster him while we were gone for our 6 months. They accepted, and Junuh has a happy temp home a mile or two from our home. We get to skype with him occasionally too.

We half-way joking, asked B and T to teach him how to fetch while we were gone. We tried very half-heartedly to teach him early on. But when I would throw pieces of popcorn to him, he'd cower and run. Bryan and Tara took our request seriously and have devoted so much patience and time in teaching him. And, it's working! Here he is in action.



Thank you, deeply, B & T! We can't wait to play when we get back.