Late yesterday afternoon, as I was on my way to Pick n Save to pick up something for Kathy, I saw something which I’d never seen before- and I ended up driving around the block several times just to make sure I had seen it correctly . . . and then the last time I perched my ever-present camera on the top of the steering wheel and snapped the picture you see above.
It was a somewhat odd-looking couple- not “circus sideshow odd” but odd as in “from the edge of town” odd. . . but it was what they were doing that was most odd. They were standing on the side of the road with two puppies at their feet, sitting in what looked like one of those rubber dish pans – and holding a sign saying “Puppies For Sale.” By the time I had circled around the last time to snap this picture, the woman was holding one of the puppies as though she was trying to make it look as adorable and lovable as possible, bouncing up and down as though holding a fussy baby. The puppies were not all that small – in fact they scarcely looked like puppies at all; they looked like dogs that have grown well past the ‘aren’t-they-cute’ stage and perhaps outstayed their welcome.
This sight bothered me for more reasons than I can name. First of all, who would be foolish enough to sell puppies this way? And who would be foolish enough to BUY puppies this way? But mostly I couldn’t stop thinking about those two puppies who didn’t ask to be born – and of how completely helpless they are – and of how much I hope they will find a home where they will be wanted and loved.