Tito, The Shelter Dog, A Love Story

The first time I saw him I thought he was so cute. He had a square blocky head that seemed too big for his body. He had beautiful red fur and tiny little white feet. He also barked like a duck! It seemed so ironic because one of the breeds that he was thought to be was called Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever. His name was Tito. I even liked that because I had never met a dog named after one of the Jackson Five. (Okay, that’s a joke!)
 
 
 
Some of the volunteers said he acted more like a cat because he wasn’t immediately all snuggly! I came to learn that he only gave affection to those who had earned it. He was a very intelligent dog. I started going with other volunteers to take dogs off-site to a nearby pet store. Somehow, I always ended up with Tito. It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with him.
 
Our facility’s dog trainer decided to have training sessions every other weekend, so I signed up to be his “K-9” trainer. One week we had a “sit” contest with 14 other dogs. Every time the trainer said go we has 3 seconds to get our dog to sit. Tito ended up winning in a tie with Lexie, a pit bull. (Note: American Staffordshire Terriers and Bull Terriers are very smart.) . One time I got him to sit and stay at the end of a 16 foot leash! He already knew shake, so I taught him how to high five.
 
Sometimes I would go pick Tito up and take him to a park near my home for a walk. He loved riding in the car and he was always very happy when I would roll the window down for him. I got proof that he was a “birding” dog when a few birds were flying a little too close to the ground and he took off! Luckily, I am pretty strong and I’m used to handling big dogs and I was able to get him back under my control. I swear it looked like he was grinning after that! He was definitely born to hunt!
 
One day as I was driving him back to the shelter I passed a McDonald’s. I did a u-turn and I parked the car. I told him to wait for me and went into the restaurant. I ordered a plain hamburger, no bun, no pickles, just the meat. I took it out to him and gave him the whole thing. He gobbled it down and seemed very content. He promptly laid down with his big ‘ole head resting between his petite little paws and fell asleep. It wasn’t long after that that he began giving me kisses! I was irretrievably hooked! It was pure doggie love from then on.
 
I wanted to adopt him myself; but, there was a major complication. One of my dogs is very elderly, sixteen to be exact. I was absolutely certain that he would not cotton to another “young whippersnapper” coming into our home. He sometimes forgets that our other dog is there and barks at her like he has never seen her before. We call it doggyheimers. I knew it wouldn’t be fair to Tito or my old boy Bailey. I was in a no win situation. Either my old boy had to pass away for me to adopt Tito or I risked that Tito would be adopted by someone else.
 
Then one Saturday a few weeks ago, I went on Facebook and saw a cute picture of Tito on one of my friend’s page and a note that he had an adoption application. It was a bittersweet moment. While tears of joy were streaming down my face, I also felt incredibly sorry for myself because I didn’t get to adopt him. I thought of what Cesar Milan always says about dogs, “You don’t always get the dog you want. You get the dog you need.” This could also apply in a short term way. I needed something outside myself to care for and love and for a year, I had Tito. He finally has his forever home and a warm place in my memory.