Newt made quite a journey before I met him. He'd been picked up as a stray in Mississippi and taken to an overcrowded shelter where his days were numbered. Lucky for him (and me) an organization in New Jersey pulled him on a transfer. He traveled first to New Jersey and then to our shelter in very rural Pennsylvania. Now, I have never believed in love at first sight. I've had several adopted dogs in my life, all dogs that I loved with all my heart. But that love was never immediate. It was always built over time. Newt is the closest thing to love at first sight I've ever known. Something in his kind eyes just melted my heart. A week later, my closest friends paid his adoption fee as a birthday gift to me.
Now in addition to never having experienced love at first sight, I've also never really adopted an "easy" animal. As a vet tech, I've always been drawn towards animals with behavioral or physical problems that make them difficult to adopt out. Newt had neither. A small part of me felt some guilt about adopting such a wonderful dog. I balanced this by working with him and training him to be a therapy dog. If I could have such a loving and friendly dog, it only seemed fair that I share him with the world. He passed his initial evaluation with flying colors and became a hit at a local hospital.
Newt is named after Newt Scamander, the main character from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Like the character, he is gentle and kind, and I am so fortunate to have found my fantastic beast.
EAST SMITHFIELD, PA
