Ruger

In 2010 I decided I wanted to adopt a dog.   I love dogs.  My dad had Labs when I was young but otherwise I'd never had a dog before. Working from home and  alone all day was an ideal situation for adopting a rescue.  I spent weeks reading and researching and looking at breeds and surfing Pet Finder.  I knew I wanted a mature dog.  Potty trained for sure.   I was convinced that I wanted a pure bred Tibetan Mastiff up until I learned how naughty and head strong they are.   I knew I wanted to be alpha so I scrapped that idea and started over.   A friend suggested I look at Bernese Mountain dogs.   She was sure that what I really was in love with were the eyebrows and that this would be a more manageable breed for a first time dogmom.  

A month of looking turned up nothing but I kept at it.   I went to visit a girlfriend in San Francisco and one night while I was there I stumbled across a dog listed from Monroe, WA.  The instant I saw his face I knew he was MY dog.  But I wouldn't get back to Washington for two weeks!  I contacted the shelter and said "That's my dog!  Please don't let anyone take him before I get there!"  But, they made no promises.  I held my breath as I checked the website every night to see if MY dog was still there.  

He was about 6 years old (they guessed) and had been found wandering the streets of Tacoma.  He was listed as Bernese and Australian Shepherd mix.  He had one blue eye and one brown eye.   I was hopelessly in love.

My first day back in the state I went straight to Monroe to meet MY dog.   He was shy,  sweet and reserved.  They called him Mufasa.  He lived in a little community shelter with 7 other dogs.   The dog house was people sized with 8 doggie beds. I loved that the windows were all at dog height,  I had to squat down to see out.  I started the adoption paperwork which was a nerve wracking experience.   I was so worried that we'd fail some part of their huge list of requirements.  It was an arduous process that required references, background check,  a home visit and yard inspection.  Because it's all volunteer run the process took a couple of weeks to complete.   Then FINALLY I got the call that he was mine! 

I will never forget his first night here.   I put his new bed on the floor near my bed.  He was curled up in it watching me.  I got down on the floor with him nose to nose and told him he was home and safe and loved.   And at the same time I was thinking "please don't bite my face off".  (He has never bitten anyone but at the time we didn't know each other).

As a family we talked about names for a couple of weeks.  It was unanimously agreed that we had to unanimously agree on his new name.  That hadn't happened yet.  One night we were all sitting together in the living room with laptops and smart phones.  We went down lists of favorite movies,  characters,  authors,  etc.  Nothing was sticking.   Then Jordan wandered onto a list of gun manufacturers.  Now THESE were good strong names!   Reading down the list there were lots of maybes.  And then he read the name "Ruger" and that was that. Votes were cast and it became official.  Done. 

When I received Ruger's official papers from the vet his breed was listed as: Bernese Mt., Australian Shepherd and........ Tibetan Mastiff.  :)

https://youtu.be/--CBAc5vICs