Luck be Love Found Twice

It started with love at first sight, again. My first “love at first sight”, is what brought Captian Carl, our Miniature Pinscher, into our home in the first place. Yes, this is a feel-good, throw-up a little, nauseating love story. It started with heartbreak, two to be exact. Two sad souls who were determined to break the cycle of serial monogamy they had otherwise been trapped in.

David was an anonymous celebrity, ready to finally enjoy the sea of women new york city has to offer. He had just broken up with his long-term high school girlfriend, who published a 23 article series about their relationship on Bustle that went viral. I was a newly born witch that had just gotten out of another year-long relationship. It was the same guy, a different body, that I had been dating for the last 10 years, which always ended the same. He says “I am lost, and need to find myself without you,” and I spend a day in bed staring at the ceiling before deciding I am going to be single for a “long time” then changing my mind and plotting ways to get him back. Yuck. This time I had the newly discovered gift of manifesting in my back pocket. I was in for a surprise.

Naturally, I had progressed to the point of wanting to be single, but the first time I laid my eyes on David, my stomach dropped to my feet. He was exactly what I wished for, I just didn’t fully know it yet. However, I was committed to staying single for a little bit longer since it had only been a few months since my last break up. We managed to abstain from each other for five months until one night out which involved us, a group of friends, and too many shots of jack to count. Through the haze of that night, and after a few months of pretending we were still single, we officially changed our relationship status to “In a relationship.” Back to the safe space of monogamy.

Fast forward a month. We recognized that this was going to be a long-term thing. Both in our 20s in living in NYC, we were in prime Puppy Fever, and a stop at a pet store after brunch confirmed it. The decision was made and we immediately signed up for every shelter and pet matching website we could find in the tri-state area. We recognized that we were a little too busy to have a young puppy that needs all the basic training or an older dog that needs extensive care. I had not realized it at the time, but I had been manifesting what was to come for the last 10 years of my life: a happy stable relationship and a spicy min pin.

We were originally looking for a Frenchton, French bulldog-Boston terrier mix. We had applied to a few already, with no luck of being chosen. During our search, we kept on encountering this one-and-a-half-year-old min pin with a floppy ear, named after a character from PeeWee Herman, despite the French bulldog-Boston terrier search filters. The little man grew on us, and we requested a meet and greet since he was at a Manhattan shelter.

Captain Carl was, and is, a sassy man. He was never socialized, so he had issues at the shelter with the other animals and was staying with a foster. David and I arrived at the shelter 15 minutes early. My heart went haywire seeing all the dogs without homes and I was now on a mission to save every dog in there. I was taking pictures, sending them to friends, playing the best doggie matchmaker I could be, knowing I could not bring them all home.

I was a mid photo session with Annie the Pitbull, who was a perfect match for our friend Jay, when David came over and said, “ You missed him come in.” Carl was quickly escorted into an office, away from the other dogs to limit the chances of a full puppy riot from starting. As we now know, he is always “ready to rumble.” I ended my match-making quest, to join David at the desk, waiting to be brought back. The excitement was building as we waited.

And then it happened again, love at first sight. This little spitfire puppy was going crazy on his leash in the office as we walked in. I knew then and there that this hellraiser was meant to be with me. He stopped running in circles and barking to smell me and David. There was no hesitation, just a welcoming lean into his new friends and with a quick lick of approval before he refocused his energy back to his battle cries.

Once the paperwork was finalized, and we were approved, we brought Captian Carl home. He explored his new home and immediately settled in. He accepted his new toys, had no potty accidents, and was eating. There was some mild separation anxiety when we left the apartment that resulted in some panic barking, but no destructive behavior. We could not have been happier.

What became very apparent was that Carl was a Mama’s boy. I loved Carl, and carl loved me. If there was a choice between mom and dad, he was choosing mom. I was the one who woke up for breakfast. I was the one who had to take him out. I was the one he cuddled with at night. I was elated that he shared the same love I had for him. It had nothing to do with the hotdogs I fed him the first week he was home.

It has been four and a half years. I am happy to say Captain Carl turns six this year and is still sassy as ever. He is blessed with the forever puppy genes and looks the same. He is one of the happiest dogs I have ever met and I can confidently report, he can now go to the dog run without causing a riot!