This weekend I had the great honour of witnessing the blissful union of two close friends in a stunning, much anticipated, out-of-town wedding ceremony (congrats Nate & Kaylan!) This would be our first night away from home since having Chance join our pack, and we found ourselves faced with the frustrating dilemma of who would be willing to care for him while we were away. We’ve never had a problem finding someone to watch Roxy and Cash being that they are both independent and very well behaved. Getting someone to care for Chance, however, proved to be a problem (surprise, surprise) although I’m sure my brutal honesty didn’t help. Here is how my proposal to prospective caretakers went:

"So, I have this dog that is paralyzed and has no control over his bathroom business. You’ll have to come over to my house, clean his pee/poop mess, change his sanitary napkin, feed him and administer his meds. Oh, and by the way, he bites."

Suffice it to say we weren’t really shocked by the chorus of "No thank yous" that followed. It was becoming very clear that finding an overnight dog sitter for him would be nothing short of a miracle. As a last ditch effort, I decided to call Carol at S.A.I.N.T.S (the organization that rescued Chance) and ask her to recommend a pet sitter who could handle his charming quirks. Luckily for us, Carol offered to take the Mongolian Monster in for the night so we could enjoy this joyous occasion worry-free.

We made our way to S.A.I.N.T.S. a few hours before our departure. I was apprehensive about leaving Chance with someone else, which in retrospect was ridiculous considering that Carol and the volunteers at the rescue had cared for him every day for months before we became his foster mom and dad. We packed a bag for him containing all the things he would require for his first night away from home; his meds, hypoallergenic food, belly wraps, pee pads and baby wipes. After a brief hello and review of his current medication schedule, we said goodbye and left him in Carol’s capable hands. My initial reaction was guilt – how could we possibly reassure him that we would come back? He’s experienced so much loss and abandonment already, his trust in us would surely falter.

Despite my anxiety we managed to have a wonderful evening and a not-so-wonderful morning as the result of the gin induced blues. I wasn’t sure what to expect upon our return, would he be filled with gratitude and appreciation for the home he has found with us? Would we be met with adoration and exuberant joy at our reconciliation? No. Chance’s immediate reaction to my fervent greeting was to display his discontent the only way he knows how…by biting me. I just can’t win with him, can I?