I can't think of a better love story than to share how I found my girl. I was in college taking a full class load and working at a restaurant full time. I had never had a pet of my own before and we didn’t have animals growing up. It probably wasn’t the smartest decision to get a seven-week-old puppy but I didn’t really care. All my co-workers were getting pets and I thought it sounded like fun. I now know I had a serious case of FOMO. I talked about getting a pup for about two weeks and didn’t do a thing to find one. But, my sister had been scouring the newspaper every day and looking online and in early November, she found a litter of eight beagle-Chihuahua mix puppies that needed homes. We went to look at them the same day.

When we got to the house, in an area of town I’d never go alone, there were only three of the eight puppies left. The family was very nice and explained they were trying to breed Chihuahuas but the dogs had something else in mind. Each of the three remaining puppies looked completely different. The last remaining boy looked like a tiny Yorkie, black with brown markings. I wanted him immediately but the family had decided they were going to keep him. The other two were both girls. One was a sweet chubby little thing, white with small brown spots. She looked like a little rolly poly. The other was thin with stick legs. She was fawn colored and looked like a tiny baby deer. I wanted the white one and kept trying to hold her in my lap. She wanted nothing to do with me and would get up to go play with my niece every time I tried to hold her. The baby deer, on the other hand, took every opportunity to crawl into my lap, snuggle into a little ball, and fall asleep. Eventually, I decided to take the hint and bring her home. I didn’t know what to name her. Some of the suggestions included Cinnamon, Fawn, Bambi, and Jumpy (my personal favorite). After having her for a full day, I decided on Fiona.

She weighed 2.4 pounds and in an instant, became the joy of everyone at the restaurant. As a first-time dog mom, I was so nervous to leave her home alone so I’d bring her to the restaurant at shift change and one of the morning servers would take her home with them until I finished my dinner shift. I created a spoiled little princess right from the start.

Early on, she ate an entire Hershey bar while I was in the shower. I thought I had killed her in less than a month. That’s how we found out she wasn’t allergic to chocolate. The next few years were a series of mistakes, learning lessons and near death experiences but we figured it out. I learned she only likes the extra soft stuffed animals and the marrow out of bones and doesn’t like any crunchy dog treats. She learned you don’t touch mom’s shoes. I learned what unconditional love is and how big my heart could really be. And I learned just how crazy I am about animals. Since finding my little Fiona, I’ve rescued animals every chance I’ve gotten. I fix them up, give them lots of love, and find their forever homes. No matter how much I want to, I can’t keep them all. I learned my lesson on taking in an animal I’m not ready for.

So today, I’ll celebrate National Dog Day with my little baby deer, the one who gave me a forever home.