An unexpected visitor will bring you good blessings!

That was what my fortune cookie read at the Chinese restaurant on Sunday, which meant that if I had any doubt about what I was going to do with the dog abandoned in my woods, fate announced loud and clear that I would be keeping her.

When heading out for lunch with my grandparents, my grandfather pointed to a carrier that he had noticed the day before and said that he'd seen a black dog sitting next to it. Since the dog wouldn't let him near her, he'd just driven on. (How he saw this carrier in a thicket of trees, I will never know!) So, of course I get out of the car to go look for the dog, who was still laying next to her carrier, crouched behind a bush. At first, she was very fearful and wouldn't come forward, just wagged her tail and growled a little. Just when I decided that my best move would be to go back to the house and get some food for her, she made her decision and ran up to me (a very fearful moment for me, crouching down while this dog charged me! I mean, she was either going to sniff or bite!). And she has followed me everywhere since- I mean, she basically was like, "Hi! I don't have a home, so I live with you now, OK? You're my new mom, did you know? OH! Another dog! She's my sister, did you know? Cats! Cool! My favorite thing! And you have food! My favorite thing! A couch! My favorite thing! TOYS! My favorite thing!"

Anytime someone abandons an animal, it really makes me angry. Don't take the responsibility if you can't handle it. I live in an area with coyotes, bobcats and big trucks- all of which can be fatal to a dog. But you know what ELSE is fatal? Locking your dog in a cage in the woods, where she is not likely to be found. Because that is what this person did- when I went back to look for the cage, it was full of feces and urine- ever inch was covered. I found the door a few feet away, bent out where she had finally started to panic and fought her way out of the cage- who knows how long she had been in there? There was some, um, remains that I think came from the (sorry Martha) roadkill possum that had been laying in the middle of the road the day before. You have to give her credit for survival instincts, right?

But so far, she is settling in like she has always lived here. Yes, she is in some dire need of training (it is obvious that no one has ever bothered), but she is trying. She and Luna love each other, even going so far as to sleep in the kennel together- they refuse to have it any other way. The only time they argue is when I get home at night- they each feel that they should get to greet me first!

Anyway, I think I am going to call her Gilda, after the energetic, wacky comedienne who has always been my hero. Because she is absolutely energetic and wacky- and loves to swim!