Poppy and Rose

By Chris Matthews

In August, 2016, a friend sent me a post about a white shepherd whose owner had surrendered him at the Pinole Animal Shelter. I was looking for another white shepherd as a companion for my white shepherd, Schatzi.

When I got to the shelter, it wasn't open yet. While I was waiting outside, a girl came and stood behind me. She was holding two tiny female puppies in her hands. She said they were sisters and she was dropping them off. A man had given them to the girl’s mother, but the girl worried that her pit bull wasn't warming up to them and might hurt them.

So I took them. I thought I would get their shots, house train them, get them fixed, and find a good home for them. All the dogs I've adopted over the years have always been over 2 years old, and these were the first puppies I'd had since I was a child.

While I was at the shelter, I checked on the white shepherd, who growled at me. He was no longer up for adoption, because he had shown signs of aggression. My heart broke for this poor dog.

When I got back to my house, I let the puppies out in my back yard. They started running around and checking everything out. By that afternoon they had settled in well.

The next day I took them to the vet, who said they were around 10 weeks old. They weighed only 2 and 3 pounds! I soon named them Poppy and Rose.

After a few months I got them fixed. They were housebroken quickly, and I trained them to come and sit. These two sisters loved each other so much. They wrestled constantly, which tired them out, and so they slept through the night. When Schatzi and I got home, there they were, waiting for us. They adored Schatzi, who ignored them. Luckily, I often had clients’ dogs at my house, so they were socialized.

Needless to say, I never did find them homes, because it was obvious that they had found one.  Poppy and Rose are four years old this June. They still adore each other, cleaning each other's eyes and sleeping together at night. Schatzi now loves them and has taught them about begging for carrots and eating gross things.

I never found out what happened to the white shepherd, but I know I was supposed to be at the shelter that day, or I wouldn't have gotten Poppy and Rose, and the thought of them not being in my life is unimaginable.