Growing our Little Family

I am a dog lover. Always have been, always will be. I was raised with dogs--rottweilers, mastiffs, labs, spaniels, mutts, chihuahuas... We've done it all. Having a dog in your life is like having a better best friend. It's impossible to duplicate the love of a dog. Who else will wet themself with excitement when you come home? Who else will lick your face and lay at your feet when you're sad? Who else will so faithfully protect you to death at even the slightest knock on the door?

Only a dog.

These last two years I've been so lonely without any best friend. I have gone months without a hug from anyone other than Jeremy and I've been so desperate to be touched, loved and needed that I've often fantasized about hugging strangers, and it was during these times that I realized a dog would greatly improve my life. I needed to be needed. I wanted to be wanted. I longed for a best friend.

So I started going to the dog park near my house where lots of dogs just run around and play with each other completely unhindered and free. It was so refreshing and soul lifting to lay in the grass under blue skies and laugh at the silliness of two dogs meeting for the first time. It made my heart lighter and I found reason to laugh and smile on so many empty days.

We talked a lot about getting a dog here in Australia but it can be really expensive. Vaccinations and vet bills are costly and many apartments won't let you have pets. Not to mention, food costs a lot and we don't make much money either. But I've wanted one so bad... I just know in my heart that what's missing from my life is a dog. And so we've decided to get a dog in Korea.

We leave Sydney on February 17th for South Korea and will be settling into Busan (our new home) at the end of the month. We're already getting ready by clearing out our house and selling things which has made it much more real, and last night Jeremy brought up pet adoptions in Korea after seeing a thread on one of Korea's notorious expat forums.

I poked around on the forums a bit this morning and ended up finding lots and lots of really great information about wonderful, English speaking, no-kill shelters in Korea where they've rescued thousands of dogs from abuse, abandonment and even from meat markets. Some of the stories will shock you. Yes, some Koreans still eat dogs and many of these dedicated rescue workers have saved lives by stealing them straight of the truck to the market or by purchasing them outright and taking them to shelters.

I read a lot of stories about individual dogs and cats who really need forever families. Lots of people who don't want to commit to forever foster animals in Korea for a few months and sometimes even years until they can find homes but sometimes they just end up going back to the shelter. Some of them have gone back and forth a few times. Many of them have health issues like heartworm or skin allergies. One poor puppy had stomach cancer and thankfully, through appeals for donations, was able to have surgery. Another dog has cushing's disease and his medical needs are about $150 a month until someone adopts him and can pay for surgery. It just makes me so sad. So many of them get left behind, beaten or abandoned and have to live out sad, lonely lives in cages. Many only get walked once a week because there is a shortage of volunteers and few have indoor homes for the winter.


Reading all of this today has only reaffirmed what I knew in my heart: I need to save a dog. I need to give someone a home. I need to empty my heart into some poor soul and better someone else's life.
And then I came across Annie.

Annie is a 2-5 yr old bulldog that was found lost, dirty and starving in Jeju City and was taken to a government run shelter where she was found sometime later boney and suffering from a serious skin condition. The no-kill shelter that removed her said she had mayeb only 2-3 days left before she would have died of hypothermia and hunger. The poor girl had suffered a lot of abuse from her previous owner and had many injuries that needed attention. Thankfully some wonderful people with big hearts found her because they were able to nurse her back to health. Annie slept solidly for several months from exhaustion and illness but made a pretty good recovery. Now she is energetic, healthy and happier and her skin condition is healing up.

But Annie has been at the shelter for over a year now. They don't have the money to keep their dogs up to date with vets and there isn't much information about their vaccination status and particularly about Annie's skin condition. This is mostly because there is no money to pay the bills. So Annie still needs a home. She loves getting out for walks but there aren't enough volunteers either and sometimes she only gets to go for a walk once or twice a week.


She really needs a family.

Which is why, if she's still available when I arrive, I'm going to take her home and give her a family and love her forever. Bulldogs are companion dogs who need lots of love and attention. They are a bit high maintenance because they need someone to clean the folds in their skin so they don't get yeast infections and they need someone to wipe away the eye goobers every day. I've never had a bulldog before but I'm up for the challenge! I want to make sure Annie gets all the care she deserves. I seriously love her already.


I'm a little worried about her skin condition but I'm looking into it. It sounds like she may have Black Skin Disease in which case I worry that there might not be anything we can do. If there isn't and it persists, it might be difficult getting her through quarantine in the US when we eventually return. I feel really strongly that I can't leave any of my babies behind but I really want to change poor Annie's life.
If any of you are interested in donating to one of these wonderful, loving animal shelters in Korea, I believe most of them accept PayPal donations. You can find out more about them here: Korea Animal Rescue Org.


I can't wait to get to Korea and start growing my little furbaby family!