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It was only recently when the Friendship Animal Protective League received a call from the East Holmes Veterinary Clinic that they had someone we may be interested in helping. A young female Rottweiler had been effectively discarded by her human companion, used simply for the purposes of breeding and selling the pups for cash. The story begins as an unfortunate one as it is often the all-too-common tale that some female dogs go through. They are treated solely as a product instead of the life-loving canine that they really are. Rest assured, this four-legged lass was not about to be cast into a pooch purgatory where she would have to fend for herself. Friendship veteran staff member Allysa and day 1 volunteer, yours truly, hopped in the car and headed down to Mennonite country in Berlin, Ohio.
The 90-minute journey to our destination was painted with numerous family farms and dotted with the occasional horse and buggy, a peaceful and scenic trip to be sure. Upon reaching our destination of the East Holmes Veterinary Clinic, we were promptly greeted by Bob, one of the clinic staff. While he’s certainly not the tallest employee there, he was one of the most ambitious, but this lively trait is quite common for Yorkies such as Bob (who was later labeled as Robert when he wouldn’t return to the lobby from outside). In a rather yin-yang of dog breeds, a Great Dane named Moose soon entered the scene, almost apologetically tardy as he followed Bob out to make our acquaintance as well. The tandem had an uncanny chemistry in their greeting duties, combining their smile-inducing powers that were nothing short of irresistible. Nevertheless, while Bob and Moose were great souls to spend time with, Allysa and myself were on a mission as it was the Rotti we sought.
Within a few minutes, one of the East Holmes humans brought out our pooch of interest. At roughly just over a year old, we laid our eyes on one beautiful Rottweiler, though it was safe to say she was a bit bewildered by all the commotion. Upon kneeling down to connect with her, it was noticeable that she was a bit under-nourished and in need of some TLC and a little chow. Though apprehensive to enter our vehicle, she eventually made her way inside and was quite the quiet passenger. Now the trick was what to name her. Of course her forever home may change it once she gets adopted, but for now, she needed an identity, even if it is only temporary. Allysa proposed the question to me, to which my immediate response was a rather uncreative “I don’t know.” Allysa coaxed my thought process by presenting the question once more. This time the name “Emma” came out. I figured we were at East Holmes, triggering the thought of Sherlock Holmes whose partner was Watson. However, Watson was a male and our dog of the day was a female. That’s when the actress Emma Watson popped in my brain. Emma it is!
Once the return trip was complete, Emma had second thoughts about exiting the confines of her travel cage. After a minute or so, she made the leap and it was to the grass we were headed. It’s been quite some time since I had seen a dog so entranced by its new surroundings. There was an excitement in Emma’s demeanor as she took in the sights, sounds and smells of it all. The calls of sparrows drew her attention to the left, while a wind-induced rustling of the weeds perked her ears to the right. Call me crazy but it was almost as if she was exhibiting an appreciation for this unfamiliar yet open environment. Soon after, Emma made her way to her cage to which she promptly feasted on bowls of food and water that were ready and waiting for her. Though she wasn’t familiar of where she was or what the future holds, Emma definitely had a level of excitement that peeked through the curtains of uncertainty.
