Wallace's Reunion with Dirk

Wallace and I had a pretty amazing chance-encounter at the dog park today. We've haven't been to our local dog park in over two weeks, so we were both already pretty excited to be back. It was wonderful to see so many of our friends there - both human and canine. :)

While we were playing, a gentleman sitting at one of the benches nearby asked me if Wallace was his name when we had adopted him. I told him that it was, and he told me, "I know this dog".

Dick and I have had a couple of people tell us that in the 3.5 months that we've had Wallace - the other times, it had been from people who had seen him up for adoption at the SF SPCA and they recognized him. Dick even had one guy tell him that he had thoughts of adopting Wallace until we did.

The gentleman we met today was named Dirk. It turns out that Dirk is the Volunteer Coordinator at the San Francisco SPCA. He told me that he had kept Wallace with him in his office during Wallace's first few days at the shelter. Wallace had been so sad and traumatized by whatever he had been through, that Dirk kept in his office to help him adjust. I think he said that Wallace hid under his chair all day.

Dick and I know very little about Wallace's past, only what they were able to tell us when we adopted him from the shelter. We know that he came from Stockton, that he had been hit by a car, and that his leg had been shattered beyond repair, so they had to perform an amputation on him when he came in. The SF SPCA has a relationship with the shelter in Stockton, which is why Wallace was able to come here.

Wallace is such a well-adjusted dog. Dick and I had made an assumption that he probably came from a nice home in Stockton, but then got hit by a car, and perhaps his previous owners couldn't afford the surgery for his broken leg. I mentioned this to Dirk today, and he said that while that was possible, he believed that Wallace had actually been on his own as a stray until they found him. He said that when he came into the SF SPCA, they had to shave off all of his fur because it was so matted, and that he was covered in foxtails that had punctured his skin all over his body.

He told me that Wallace was so sad for several days, and that he (Dirk) was trying to help him find his will to live (that makes me so sad!). He also told me that Wallace was put into a group of shy/unsocial dogs that were put together so that they could learn to socialize with each other and learn to play.

When Dick and I first met Wallace (almost a week before we adopted him) we met a volunteer who had just taken Wallace out for a walk. The volunteer told us that Wallace was a very sweet dog, but was very shy, and had only started to come out of his shell within the last couple of days. Wallace had only had his amputation 10 days before we met him. When we met Wallace again three days later, and then again after another three days, he was noticeably more comfortable, healthier and happier each time.

It was truly remarkable for us to have the opportunity to meet Dirk today. Again, we know so little about Wallace's history, learning a little more about him today was so amazing. I loved that Dirk remembered Wallace with such fondness, and that he was able to see Wallace today - so much healthy and happier. Dirk said he never would have recognized Wallace as the same dog if I hadn't kept the name that he had at the SPCA. He said it was obvious that Wallace is a very joyful dog and that he has a good life with us.

Dirk doesn't usually come to our dog park. He usually brings his two dogs to another dog park in the mornings, and then walks his dog on leash around the neighborhood in the afternoon. He came to our dog park this afternoon because he's been down with a cold, and didn't have the energy for a walk, but his dogs could still run out their energy at the park. It was really a chance-encounter that we met today!

I feel so lucky. Wallace feels so lucky. We all feel so lucky to have this life together.


Wallace sitting with Dirk, who helped rehabilitate him at the SF SPCA