For a couple of years, there was hardly a week that went by that we did not have Lucky Dog puppies in our house. Sometimes there were one or two. Other times there was a large litter of rambunctious little (or not so little) ones camped out in our basement. Then, I retired from my career and all of a sudden I found that I just couldn't live according to a schedule. I took off my watch. The battery had gone dead anyway. I abandoned the appointment book. I was free to sleep in, stay up late, and come and go whenever I wanted.

Dehydrated. Exhausted. Helpless. Puppies easily hold a special place in most people’s hearts at the best of times, but for our Lucky Dog volunteers who had arrived in Puerto Rico that weekend, it was a sight they would never forget. The K puppies first saw us as they did most people, as another car that did not see them, as another car driving by an open field where they lay fighting for their lives. But, they never gave up hope, and when we spotted them from the van we knew we had to act.

When someone says, Pit Bull, what’s the first image that comes to mind, a sweet, smiley dog or a scary, violent one? If it’s sweet and smiley, then I applaud you, but unfortunately it’s usually the latter. When I first started educating myself on bully breeds I was happily surprised to discover that there are many ways we can remind ourselves, and others, as to what “Pit Bull” really stands for.

Some time ago, I was speaking with the neighbor of a family friend. She told me that her family recently added a furry friend to their home and that they were having great difficulty with the puppy. She described how the dog displayed the kind of aggression that was well outside the norm for a 3-month-old pup—lunging at children, snapping at other dogs, and cowering in fear of strangers. She mentioned medical problems and the costs she had incurred on vaccinations the dog should have already had.

“Do you mind me asking where the puppy came from?” I asked.

There’s never been a time when I haven’t wanted a dog. In fact, when I was six years old, I wanted to BE a dog when I grew up.

And while my love of dogs was never a secret, the idea of getting a family pet never gained much momentum in my house — beyond parakeets and a pair of fire-bellied toads. Every chance I had to spend time with a dog was precious, and, to me, dog owners were the luckiest people on earth.

It would be close to 30 years later before I shared that luck.