Porter

The crazy dog that changed my life.

Porter was the first dog that I got for myself as an adult.  It was a disaster.  I went to the shelter to get a dog because we had had a string of burglaries at our house.  I saw Porter in his kennel, and he looked very peaceful and wise.  I’m guessing that, just before I walked into the kennel area, Porter must have been running around and he smacked his head into the wall and stunned himself, or something.  He was not a calm or wise dog.  We nearly died on the way home from the shelter as he tried to sit on my lap as I drove.  Once we got home, of course he wouldn’t do anything I wanted him to.  He destroyed the kitchen.  He was impossible to walk with.  He was just crazy.  I almost returned him to the shelter.

It took several weeks but I finally learned how to be a dog person, to appreciate his good qualities and build on them.  Gradually our relationship improved.  After we had had Porter for a year, and he was two years old, someone was rehoming a dog, a black lab mix, and we said we would see how she fit in with Porter.  The first ten minutes were rough, as Porter overwhelmed her.  After that, the new dog turned out to be just the thing for Porter.  We named her Tess.  Life with two dogs was so much easier than life with one dog.  Porter and Tess were best buddies, and they expended their energy on each other, requiring less attention from me.  Tess was a good dog from the first moment we met her, doing everything we asked.  I think she showed Porter by example how to be a good dog.

It was because of Porter and Tess that I ended up getting Kelsy, and it was because of Kelsy that we started doing search work, which led to Mu and Fozzie and Tino.  Porter started a whole chain reaction that completely changed my life.  I wish he knew how grateful I am for all of the changes he triggered.  We hiked in the mountains of Utah and Colorado, through the redwoods of California, and through the Olympics and Cascades.  Porter came to work with me.  When Kelsy started training as a search dog, Porter was a target dog for us.  Porter was always happy.  He had a goofy dance he would do.  He lived to be 15 years old and was happy every day that I knew him.  He taught me so many things.  Although I wish I had more pictures of him, I am grateful for the pictures I do have.  He was a beautiful, funny, sweet boy, and he made my life so much better.