About Chase

2009 – From a North Carolina animal shelter, a dying puppy is pulled by a Mid-west Labrador rescue and fostered for a few months while they attempt to bring him back to life. Beaten, battered, and bruised, the Golden Retriever and German Shepherd mix is near death from neglect and malnourishment. His body is covered in abuse, but his sunny soul shines through.

All Chase wanted was a chance. He rose above and beyond what evil humans brought down on him. He climbed from the depth of despair, with his tail wagging and face smiling. They never broke him. They tried. The scars are there. But Chase has never noticed them.

Chase was a handful. He was scared of everything – jumped at the noise from the refrigerator, ran from the bathroom when the toilet flushed, and growled at orange zone cones when he crossed the street. A pile of leaves from fallen branches once had him lunging us forward to attack the suspicious bystander with vigorous might. He was scared but feisty, brave but funny, and full of determination. He never met a challenge he didn’t try to meet. He usually conquered it, too.

When he was three years old, Chase was diagnosed with epilepsy. This was a journey down a less-traveled road where the weeds are a bit overgrown and the birds look at you like dinner. The information was tough and arduous to slog through, and fear of making any kind of misstep kept me on my toes. But down the rabbit hole I went, in search of how to heal my boy. With years of research, questions, and trial-and-error, I’ve managed to keep him mostly seizure-free his whole life.

Some events that happen in your life create a distinct divide into “before” and “after.” These events not only change your life, but you – who you are at your very core. Before Chase and After Chase. He taught me to live in the moment and appreciate everything at face value. Because of Chase, I learned to stay true to myself, as well as challenge myself along the way. He taught me to accept the here and now, and make the best of it as you continue to plow forward on your journey.

The world seems to revolve around Chase, as though he himself is the sun. He’s the brightest, happiest and most energetic dog you could ever meet. And indeed, people, children, and other dogs flock to him like a beacon of light. He wakes every day with a tail wag and goofy smile, ready to have fun and enjoy what life has to offer. Not much gets him down, and nothing stops him from making the best of everything.

Hesitant. I was hesitant to let Chase and Topez meet off leash, inside, with just me to supervise them – two solid dogs who could tear each other apart if things went badly. They had already met, of course, a few days prior by way of a controlled, leashed meeting. They spent time sniffing each other through screens, gates, and crates while Topez decompressed from her ordeal. But still. Though they were clearly anxious to meet, I was simply anxious.

Three hours after the screen they had been sniffing each other through was lifted, collars and leashes undone, and one breath-caught-in-my-chest moment when Chase put Topez sternly-but-politely in her place, my cheeks hurt from grinning and my eyes stung from blinking back tears too hard. They didn’t stop playing for three hours. I actually had to break them up so they could take a rest. They’ve been playing together ever since.