In February 2007, my parents adopted Booker from Lab Rescue. He was a young pup at the time – about 18 months – but already an ‘old soul’. He has this regal and distinguished personality and demeanor about 90% of the time. The other 10% he’s pure silly, fun, and playful. He has brought so much joy into our lives that I just knew I would have a dog of my own one day. That day came in September of 2011. Booker had spent about 3 weeks with me while my parents were out of town. When they came back and he went home, my house just felt empty. I knew it was time. I began browsing the ‘adoptable labs’ portion of the site, and Bear immediately caught my eye. He was proudly wearing a pair of aviator sunglasses with a huge smile. I read about him, looked at the rest of his pictures, and just knew he was mine. I did my due diligence and looked at the rest of the dogs just to be sure, but my mind was made up. About a week later, he was mine. He and I bonded almost immediately, it was like he knew that I’m his “forever Mom”. It was sad – his previous owner(s?) had never taken the time to leash train him… or really train him beyond anything other than ‘sit’. We had a lot of work to do. At 6 years old, we were working on leash training, laying down, obeying commands, and even how to play with toys. It took time, effort, and patience on both ends, but he now heels when he walks (usually), comes when called (again, usually), and knows several commands. People comment about how well-behaved he is (and of course, how adorable he is). That’s always a ‘proud mama’ moment. Perhaps the most heartwarming story is the one playing out in our lives right now. My neighbor recently lost her 13-year old Golden Retriever mix whom she rescued as a puppy. Bear and Darwin were good buddies, even if Darwin was a bit slower than Bear. They’d exchange pleasantries and go on their doggie ways. About a month after Darwin passed, my neighbor just couldn’t bear having an empty home any longer, so she adopted a 5-month old collie pup named Bartholomew (“Bart” for short). Bart was pretty sick as a young pup, so his foster mom kept him pretty sheltered so he could get well and get stronger. He wasn’t exposed to much over the past few months, so he’s easily frightened. He’d spend the entire day hiding under the table if left to his own devices. Enter Bear. Bear immediately took Bart under his wing (paw?). He tolerates the puppy play – the paw-batting, the lip chewing (I guess he tastes good?), the play nipping. He even obliges in games of “chase me!!” Through play, Bear is teaching Bart that the outside world is fun and not that scary. He’s teaching Bart how to go on walks, interact with other dogs and the world, and really just be a happy boy. It’s such a joy for me to see Bear taking on the ‘big brother’ role with a puppy who really needs him, and Bart’s mom is so grateful that he has such a good example in Bear. Bear is an absolute sweetheart, and he’s my best buddy. He’s so full of life and joy and excitement that he brings smiles to everyone he meets. He adores children to the point where I think he had kids of his own in a previous life, and he takes his role as “neighborhood greeter/ambassador” very seriously. I’m so happy he chose me as his forever home.