Hi All! Happy Holidays! Usually I write these blogs myself, but Bentley's letter was so cute (he asked me to check it for spelling mistakes), I just wanted to share... Bentley is the dog that ran out into the road and stopped directly in front of our car while we were en route to the finale of "American Idol" earlier this year. We ultimately adopted him from the shelter in South L.A.
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Dear All the Nice People at
the South L.A. Animal Shelter,
Hi. My name is Bentley, but you wouldn’t know me by that
name. I myself didn’t even know it
was my name until recently. They
call me other names too you see, and so it was a little confusing at
first. Even now I sometimes answer
to “good boy,” “Bent,” “hi cutie,” and “puppy.” I know now though, that the name is Bentley. She has a mirror in the bedroom and I
saw it printed on my nametag.
Anyway, you would have known me as “Lab/Shar Pei mix” followed by a
bunch of numbers that I do not remember.
I wanted to drop you a line to let you know how things are going. You all seemed so excited when they came and visited me. I’ll never forget when you moved me to another room and rang a bell yelling, “Adoption!” I didn’t really understand what it meant at the time. It was scary at first. After I went to that new room I traveled to a scary place that smelled like medicine and I got very tired. I woke up groggy and wasn’t sure what was happening for a while, but eventually things settled down. I thought I’d better write you before I forget.
I do forget things. For example, I don’t remember a lot of
my life before they came to get me.
I remember bits and pieces but… well, I’ll save all that for another
time. I mostly remember the
important things, things like chicken and some of my Ninja moves, but that’s
another story. Maybe it’s not so
much that I forget as much as it is that I just don’t think of those times very
often.
What I really want to do is
thank you. I know you took good
care of me and that you work hard taking care of a lot of us (I watch the
“Animal Planet” channel when they leave me alone and I’ve learned a lot) and
well, I thought you would appreciate knowing where I am now. First of all, let me just clarify that
they don’t leave that channel on when they leave. They actually don’t often leave me alone, but when they do
they like to let me watch Nickelodeon.
I’m sure they think the animal station is too depressing, but I have
learned how to use the remote.
Anyway, they are very nice people and say they love me. I believe them. I can tell by the way they take care of
me, try to teach me and by the way they pet me. The girl’s name is Tan (pronounced TAHN and short for Tanya
apparently) and the guy’s name is Russ (short for Russ Grammie).
When I first went with them,
I didn’t feel very well. I was
very tired and didn’t feel much like myself. We were in a place called a hotel for a number of days until
I was well enough to fly. When I
first arrived in New York though, I still didn’t feel very well. They took me to a place called “the
vet” and it turned out I had an infection and another infection too. I had surgery and took medicine for my
cough. I hated wearing that cone
but when it finally came off I was very excited. They took me to another house (it turns out that they have
three houses – well, one is a place called “mom’s”) and I met my sister Sadie. She’s a black and white Aussie and we
get along great! She loves to play
and knows EVERYTHING! I generally
listen to her and do what she says.
I figure that she knows what’s best. The only time I really don’t listen to her at all is if I
see a squirrel or if I am running toward my food bowl. I’m just too distracted to listen to
ANYONE then. Although the Tan and
Russ are trying to get me to listen to them NO MATTER WHAT.
They brought me to a school
and I met a lady named Dottie. She
is in charge of my lessons but Tan and Russ are the ones who hold my leash. They all think I get overly excited
when I see squirrels and other dogs so they have me taking private lessons
before they let me participate in a “class.” I don’t really know what that is, but I’m sure I’ll find out
soon. I like other dogs, I just
can hardly wait to get over to them and say “hi.” Sometimes they just don’t get it. I mean, there is a certain sense of urgency in greeting
other dogs – and I have to sniff them and pee on something right away. I have been slowing down though – and
they seem to like that so I guess I’ll keep doing it.
I’ve learned a lot of words
in their language too. I know how
to “sit” and how to “down.” I also
know “wait,” “shake,” “stay” and “go for a walk outside.” When it’s time for “do you want some
food” I run into “your crate” and sometimes I get a “bone” or a “toy.” I know how to “go get it,” but
squirrels are sometimes more interesting than finding the “ball.” I don’t mind confessing that sometimes
I forget the words and cheat. If
that happens I can either try guessing or just look at Sadie and copy her. Like I said, she knows everything.
It’s starting to get cold
here in New York, so Tan bought me a coat. I like it. It’s
warm. OH, and GUESS WHAT! It snows here.
White stuff comes down from the sky and rests on the ground. You can eat it AND run in it. It’s amazing all the different things
there are. I really like the deer too, but they won’t let me get too close to
them.
They are nice people. You would like them. They are something called
“musicians.” They work on shows,
play music, and go to the studio.
I’ve been there. It’s ok. I like the lake house better and the
woods, but I meet nice people everywhere and the guys in the studio give me
plenty of “treats.” I have
“Graham-parents.” Those are Russ’s
mom and dad. Tan’s mom is just
called “Mom.” She lives with a Joe
and an Angela too when she’s home from a place called college. Sometimes we stay at her house. That’s always fun because there’s
another dog there named Lexi.
She’s an Aussie like Sadie but much bigger and somewhat older. She doesn’t like to play much but still
gets excited sometimes. OH! I forgot to tell you that my
Graham-parents have a BIRD! Have
you ever heard of such a thing!?
It lives in a cage right in the house! I don’t really understand why I can’t chase it, but fine.
Anyway, things are going well
for me. They let me nap on the
couch even though I have my own bed and a crate. I curl up with Sadie sometimes and that’s nice. I guess it doesn’t really matter if I
remember everything about my old life anyway. Like I said, I do remember the important things and I am
quite happy with the way things are now.
Thanks for making sure I went
to go live with nice people. I was
down on my luck a little when you last saw me. Things are definitely looking up now. Tan always smiles when I wag my tail so
I’ve been doing it more and more.
Thanks again – for
everything.
Sincerely,
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