I didn’t get much sleep last night. I kept thinking about Lucy, Sonny, Piper, Cooper and Paco, only a few of the dogs I personally handled yesterday at the Weatherford/Parker County Animal Shelter.

Like many of you, last week I watched the Oprah show which was about the horror of puppy mills. Think what you will about Oprah, but as a shelter volunteer and animal activist, I could not fault a thing that was said on that show. It was raw in its truth and hopefully opened the eyes of a lot of people who have chosen to look the other way when it comes to the welfare of dogs in America.

Having spent a large part of February and March in England, then playing catch up for a few weeks, I had neglected spending much hands-on time at the animal shelter. To be honest, it was easy to slip back into the ambiguity of helping without touching. I guess I can thank Oprah for the wake-up call because the next day I found my car taking me there to see how I could help out on what turned out to be a busy Saturday. Monday I went in again to help update the Petfinder site with fellow volunteer, Barb Pursley. We also took a couple of shelter dogs around to visit Peggy Hutton at the Weatherford Chamber of Commerce, Jessica and Gary Houghton at Etched! with a quick stop at Sports Stuff to see Jessica. It was a great outing for the dogs and good publicity for the shelter as well.

I could write (and have done in the past) many words about why there are so many lost, abandoned, and abused dogs and cats in this country. For today I will just say this. Please spay or neuter your pets and the next time you want to add a furry companion to your home, please adopt from a shelter.

Now, let me tell you about the dogs I mentioned by name that kept me awake last night. If you’d like to see pictures of them go to www.parkerpaws.com and click on Petfinder.

Sonny (case # 08-1354P) is a male Collie/Great Pyrenees mix. He’s fluffy and adorable but has not been socialized and is missing his litter mates something terrible. I spent a lot of time with him on my lap and he even began to wag his tail. Sonny is going to be a gentle giant and a great family dog. His sister, Molly (case # 08-1353P) is in the shelter as well.

Piper (case #08-1298P) is a shy chocolate Lab. She’s still a young adult and really wants to attach to a human. She loves other dogs and would make a good second dog to complete a family.

Lucy (case #08-1365P) was brought in by her owner who was moving and could not take her with him. She’s house trained and sleeps with a raccoon soft toy. Lucy is about 2 ½ years old, already spayed and current on her shots. She’s a Shepherd/Great Pyrenees mix but is not as large as a German Shepherd and has the docile kind spirit of a Great Pyrenees.

Cooper (case #08-1364P) is a male Wire Haired Terrier/Australian Shepherd mix. He’s still a puppy and is achingly adorable! He was brought in by his owner because he likes to chase the livestock. Cooper would make a great family pet because he’s not going to be too big, is good with children and other dogs. I also know he rides well in a car as he is one of the dogs we took visiting with us. He’s one of the lucky ones because he small, cute and already neutered which almost guarantees adoption.

Paco (case #08-1199) is a white Chihuahua/Terrier mix. He loves to ride in the car and behaved very well on visits around town. Paco appears to be around 8 years old, but for such a small guy that’s still quite young. He loves to be held and looks more like a Chihuahua than a Terrier.

Before I attempted to get some sleep last night I gave all three of my dogs a big hug and kiss. Two of them were shelter dogs and I told them how lucky they were to be dozing on our bed with a full belly and roof over their heads. There are so many fantastic dogs and cats that are just waiting to lock eyes with their soon-to-be family. Adopt from a shelter. It’s the right thing to do.