Above my desk, I have a five-foot by four-foot poster*, mounted on hard foam-core, featuring a fantastic photo of my dog Otto along with his name and his adoption date on the poster: June 16, 2008.
And yet, when I received a card in the mail earlier this week from a work colleague, someone who works on WDJ’s website and marketing team from our publisher’s headquarters in Norwalk, Connecticut, wishing Otto a happy 10th “Adoptaversary,” I was flummoxed for a minute. Oh my goodness! Did I actually miss the opportunity to celebrate the TENTH anniversary of the date I adopted my beloved Otto?? And how did my colleague remember when I did not? (I asked! The answer was, in a blog post about vaccinations some weeks ago, I mentioned Otto’s date of adoption, as it related to how long it has been since he has been vaccinated . . . and she actually took note of that date! And found a card that specifically mentioned the 10th “Adoptaversary” of a dog!! And sent it to me on time!)
The fact is, while I have definitely been counting the years that I have shared with Otto, I don’t think I have ever celebrated his “gotcha” date (as other dog owners I know call it). And that’s a shame, since I don’t celebrate his birthday (estimated to be sometime in November), either. And I treasure our time together; I really should be celebrating this date every year – and I’m putting it on my Google calendar so I won’t miss it next year. My sincere thanks to my colleague for the card and the nudge! What’s WRONG with me??
Do you celebrate the date that you adopted your dog? Or his or her birthday, if you know it?
* I got the poster from a chain of California-based pet supply stores, Pet Food Express. They have something called their “My Mutt Program,” whereby a person can send them proof that they have made a donation of $250 or more to a shelter or nonprofit animal rescue group, and Pet Food Express will send a professional photographer to take a photo of their pet, have a huge poster made, and hang it in the Pet Food Express store of their choice for about six months… And after the poster hangs in the store for a while, it will be taken down and the pet owner gets the poster to keep. Check out the link. It’s an absolutely great program that encourages more donations to needy shelters and rescues, and provides owners with stunning art of their pets. And it makes a great gift! You can make a donation to your local shelter in a friend’s name and let THEM receive the photography session and poster.
