Adoption and Rescue Dogs

If you don’t follow Amos on Instagram, you wouldn’t know that Amos is my first dog and that I never used to like dogs. I thought they were smelly and gross—yes I used to be one of those people! And even if I had liked dogs, never ever in my life would I have chosen a dog like Amos. I can’t even bear to write that now as I love him to pieces and I would pick him every time over and over again. 

But that’s definitely not where I started and you need to know that! You can read more about that on my first blog here on DailyBarker and on my personal blog.

My story of learning to love dogs and my journey to adoption, began in England whilst my husband and I were living there. My husband’s parents had a border collie named Tiga and he taught me how to love a dog and the unconditional love that a dog will show you in return. I will forever be truly grateful for that because Amos is only here with us because of Tiga.

I am also extremely sad to share that Tiga recently passed away on Monday 22nd April, 2019. He made such an impact on my life.

So upon returning to Australia, we knew at some point we would get a dog.  But that felt like a long way off. But you know, things happen and almost 10 months after moving back to Australia, Amos found us on the RSPCA website. That was the day our lives changed forever and we became dog parents.

I recently asked my husband why he chose to look at RSPCA and he can’t remember why. He just always knew about RSPCA and so it seemed like the logical place to start looking for a dog as we knew we wanted to adopt and rescue a dog.

Every couple of weeks we would sit there and scroll through the RSPCA looking at only border collies or kelpies. Because of Tiga, that is all we knew and all we wanted.

You see we were only considering getting a dog because I had recently been unwell from a rheumatoid arthritis flare and was only working part-time, of which I still only work part time.

I knew I could not manage a collie with my current health condition.  Hold that thought, I thought I couldn’t manage a collie when in fact I could have. I now know that.

So one night we were scrolling and we saw Amos. Amos, a cute Catahoula x Beagle. Now we had never heard of a Catahoula but it didn’t matter. His eyes, nose, and that smile were all we needed. We couldn’t stop thinking about him. He had found his furever family and I think he knew that.

I can’t even begin to describe the love I feel for him now. He now has a piece of my heart and I love him so much it hurts. So I encourage you to have an open mind because like I said, I would never have chosen a dog like Amos and he is in fact, the best thing that has ever happened to me. Other than my husband, of course!

Adopting Amos was absolutely the best thing we have ever done and the most rewarding thing. I only have Amos because of rheumatoid arthritis and my journey with Tiga. If I could go back in time, I would get rheumatoid arthritis every single time just so I could get Amos.

He is my best friend and my heart dog. From here on in there will only ever be one Amos Pearce.

His smile and his eyes stole my heart, and we felt that connection instantly.

You may not always feel it immediately so take the time to search the adoption sites and go out and meet dogs. You never know, you may find your best friend and just imagine the difference you can make in that dog’s life.

I recently asked RSPCA for some statistics regarding adoption in 2018 in Queensland:

• Total animals that came into care last year were 56,015 (pets and wildlife)
• 18,339 animals were adopted out with 6,719 pets also reunited with their owner

Rescue dogs don’t all come with baggage, but you need to be prepared to put in the work. But I believe that is the same as any dog regardless of where they are from. It is so worth it. It took Amos a very long time to settle in and we are still learning more about him every single day. Rescue dogs have so much love to give, and in return, all they ask for is our love.

Every day my heart feels full, because by choosing to adopt Amos, I have given him a life that he could never have dreamed of and we have changed his life and now all he feels is safety and love. Plus, he has changed our life for the better.

So whilst this blog is about Amos, I want to say thank you to Tiga from the bottom of my heart. You will always hold a very special place in my heart.

In loving memory of Tiga Pearce.

Have you adopted a pup? Tell us their story in the comments!

Melissa Pearce

My name is Mel and I am the proud dog mum of Amos Pearce. We live in Brisbane, Australia and just love adventuring though life together. Growing up, I used to hate dogs but after being diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis, I started to see dogs in a different way. Now I like to think of myself as the ultimate Dog Mum and I love it! I honestly can’t imagine life without Amos. Amos is a rescue from RSPCA Queensland and a proud RSPCA Furbassador. Together we share our most precious moments with you all as part of one big awesome life journey. Our little family rocks!

http://www.amospearce.com