Take Four... Scary Sasha

Last year I became an official dog foster carer. I was full of anticipation as we drove for 2 hours to collect our new furry friend. Mum and I agreed that if we got there and the dog was a mental we would turn around and go home, leaving the dog to be put to sleep. In hindsight I find that hard to fathom.

I smiled in disbelief the entire way whilst mum attempted to look unimpressed but her nervous smile broke through. Mum repeatedly shook her head and said “I can’t believe I am taking you to get a bloody dog”. We arrived at a shack surrounded with wire fences. Looking through the wire were dirty animals of all kinds, ducks, horses, sheep, cats, you name it they had it. The tin shed made everything echo hightening the level of terrified barking that could be heard. Without looking at the other dogs I went to see Sasha, I had to remain focused or else I would have taken them all home. In the end of the cage was a timid little black ball with her tail between her legs. They had kept her in “the kill kennel” in case we did not arrive to collect her. Sasha had only been there 6 days!!! Taking in a strange old dog is an obvious risk, but one look at her- so vulnerable and pathetically helpless sealed the deal. If the Aussie thing to do is "back the underdog" we are as pure as they come!

People always go on about how lucky Sasha is to have found us but honestly she makes my day every day. She is such a dork that when her tail wags she almost falls over. She is lazy and struggles to make furry friends as she doesn't differentiate between dogs and sheep. She sits with me as I sip my tea and will watch ”Friends” re runs without attempting to steal the remote. She only demands food, pats, walks and special attention when it rains. Apart from that she just wants to make me happy, which she does. The organization told me I was a “failed puppy foster carer” for keeping Sasha but that is a title I am willing to wear.

The week I got Sasha I read in a Lorna Jane catalogue (the source of all knowledge and inspiration) that you should “do something every day that scares you”, for me this motto has paid off. I must admit I forget most days, like right now- its 7:40pm and am running out of time. I think my scary task for today may be cleaning a bit of my room. You may be sitting there thinking “that’s not scary!” obviously you have never been in my room!!