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9:41pm

In memory of Pepper

Featuring:

Pepper

When I adopted Pepper from HSMC, I was told that she had been abused by this old farmer. I didn't know the extent of the abuse, only that I had to help this dog with the big sad brown eyes and coat of silk. Sierra was only two at the time, so I was a little concerned about Peppers behavior around a loud child. The two of them bonded very quickly and became inseparable. Sierra would ride Pepper like a horse. Pepper would lay down on the floor and let Sierra sit on her and then she would stand up then they would walk all over the place. I will never forget Sierra's 1st day of school. Pepper cried all day. She soon learned the schedule of the bus and would sit waiting patiently, staring intently out the window to see her little girl come out the door of that big yellow thing. Pepper slept in bed with Sierra every night doing her job. Protecting her human. When arthritis took over, she would sleep at her doorway.
Pepper never came to like men, which in a way was good. She wasn't a prejudiced dog. Race nor ethnicity meant a thing to her. If you were a man, you were not coming in her house period. Because of the abuse, Pepper was not a trusting dog. She wasn't a dog that you could take anywhere other than walks in the neighborhood and hope and pray she didn't see another dog, or God help you a cat.
Despite all her faults which I know came from the abuse, she was a loving, gentle, devoted dog. She gave us 12 years filled with happiness and comfort. I could ask for no more. I slept peacefully at night knowing that no one or nothing was going to get close to her house without her letting me know. I miss that security tremendously.
I know that she was as happy and content with us as we were with her.
But now Pepper sits on a shelf in my bedroom watching over me, and I know that she out of pain and is healthy again. I know that once she crossed that Rainbow Bridge on Feb. 8th, she learned to like other dogs and is probably sleeping with a cat right now.