Trust. Most dogs that is easily come by but for puppy mill dogs that are almost blind, trust for them is like being able to see clearly all the time. When the original foster mom brought Scottie over to my house for me to foster for a month to see if I wanted to adopt him I had no idea how much he was going to change my life. His favorite corner of the entire house was in the living room by the sliding glass doors. That was his safety zone. Scottie never strayed far from that corner. Everything was once again new for him. Scottie was afraid of everything pretty much when he got here. To pat him on the head he would shy or cower away.

Going outside through the sliding glass doors was scary to him. My own sheltie Emma after playing with him for a while realized there was something wrong with Scottie. Emma would run out the sliding glass doors and wait for Scottie to come out and when he hesitated she would run up and bump his nose with hers or bark once as if to say "come on its ok" and then he would go out the door. She has become his seeing eye dog.

When Scottie would play in the house and get ready to bump into something Emma would run up and nudge him away from whatever was going to hurt him. She watches over him and protects him inside and outside. Scottie can only see shapes and movements and has retinal atrophy.

I had cancer over the summer and was in a state of depression when I started looking at Scottie. I was a volunteer for Indiana Sheltie Rescue but after my surgery I was ready to drop out and became less active in the group. The minute the first foster mom brought Scottie over to my house things began to change. Emma had been a little depressed also because over the summer while I was sick my parents were here with their sheltie Cody and she was used to having another playmate. So the best medicine in the world slowly bumped his way through the house and into our hearts.

Over time, I have been able to come up to Scottie and pet him on the head now without him cowering away. He is wanting his freedom some in the house so he now sleeps in the kitchen with his crate door open but gated in so he can't wander and get hurt. Emma always runs up to him before bed time and in her way kisses him good night and makes sure he is tucked in safely. Scottie is coming up to me and my family on his own now looking for affection and what a great feeling that is! When I come home from work he, like Emma, runs in the kitchen to greet me and is excited to hear me come in. He responds to my voice and my early Christmas present from Scottie was on December 23, 2004, he came up and licked my feet!!! It may not sound like much but for him it was a milestone. Patience has finally over come frustration in trying to help him feel secure in his surroundings.

People want the "perfect" dog, cat or whatever animal they prefer. In wanting that I am grateful because soon I will have the "perfect" dog in Scottie. He is showing his own affection in his own way. He is playful, curious, energetic and the best doctor I have ever met! I have become active again with ISR and Emma loves her new foster brother. Every day with Scottie is an adventure and he deserves to have the same loving fulfilling life that a "normal" dog does. To start the first five years of his life in a puppy mill, living in a cage and being used only to breed is an awful beginning. Now he is starting to like to be petted and getting used to human interaction with him is the wall he is breaking down. What is Trust to Scottie now? Living in a nice warm house with a little "sister", loving pats on the head and back, being brushed, laying by the fire on a cold snowy winter night and getting talked to like he is worthy of being there! Don't forget those treats at night before we go to bed either!

What a wonderful dog. Scottie has changed my life and Emma's and everyone in my life he has met. I would not trade him for anything. I thank the Lord that no one wanted him after coming into our rescue because I needed him as much as he needed me! I wonder how many other dog's like Scottie there are that no one wants just because they can't see, hear, walk right or have other medical problems. That does not make them less perfect. The person that adopts them are the ones who will have more love given back to them, the dogs know who loves them and really wants them. Scottie I love you and want you to stay with me forever in my forever home!!

Story of Scottie - Valeria Reckert

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