It’s been said that acquiring a dog may be the only opportunity a human has to choose a relative.
We had the good fortune to “acquire” our beloved Maggie.

Early in 1996 there was a raid on a puppy mill in Spokane, WA. The people who went in to rescue the dogs said that they had never seen such horrible conditions. The couple who ran the mill weren’t there when the raid took place. A number of the dogs were dead, or dying, and there was only one partially full bag of kibble left for the dogs that were still alive.

One breed that was rescued was Bullmastiff. We had previously had a “bullie” who was with us for 13 years, so we were definitely familiar with the dogs. We contacted the breeder who had the Bullmastiffs from the rescue and made an appointment to meet the dogs. The dog we were directed to was named “Disco” by a group of children who played with the dogs after their rescue. This particular dog would spin in circles so fast that you wouldn’t have believed that a creature her size would be capable of maneuvering so. When we met her, she was timid but friendly. The breeder said she thought the dog was probably about 2 years old. She had obviously had at least one litter, and because she was being bred, she was probably valued a little more than the others.

Our family immediately fell in love with Maggie. It took her a while to trust that she was finally in a safe place with us, but once she did it was like she knew that we would love and care for her. It was sad because whatever those people did to her to break her spirit, she never understood how to play with a ball, or chase a Frisbee. She never knew how really big she was, but at 140 lbs. she was the best “cuddler”. We were fortunate to have her in our lives for 8 years and miss her dearly. There will always be an empty spot in our hearts for her.

Miss you Maggie Mae,
Dad, Mom, Missy, T & Jenni