family life | F E AT U R E
summer a night with
written by Jayson Kimberly HFM Kid Ambassador and founder of Leave it for the Pooch
In the fall of 2019, I was invited by Abandoned Animal Rescue (AAR) of Magnolia, Texas, to participate in “A Night in the Dog House,” a unique event to raise funds for their rescue animals. Volunteers would spend a night with a dog in a kennel, so humans could experience the shelter world through a dog’s eyes.
I
was grateful that AAR of Magnolia reached out to me to take part in their Night in the Dog House event and could not wait to tour my 12hour living quarters. Upon arriving, I was greeted by some fantastic volunteers who spoke about the event as we walked toward the indoor kennel room. All the dogs were excited to see us, barking and wagging their tails as we walked in. As I rounded the corner, I saw a beautiful brown Pitbull mix lying on a dog cot in a kennel. I looked at her information sheet and learned that her name was Summer and that she had been at the shelter for a long time. She and a fur friend were brought to the rescue together. Her friend got adopted soon after. The volunteers noticed my interest in Summer and asked if I would like to step inside and say hello. As I entered, I bent down and introduced myself to her. She looked at me with her big, brown eyes as if she wanted to respond but could not. She obviously enjoyed the company because she was jumping all over me and giving me kisses. Even with the short time I spent with her on the tour, I had trouble understanding why she hadn’t been adopted. Was it because she was a pit mix? I never could figure it out, but I knew she was special and had love
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to share with everyone. Even though someone had thrown her away, she still had hope that there was someone out there who would want her. I promised her if she wasn’t adopted by the time the event took place, I would share the kennel with her.
SUMMER’S DREAMS Summer stayed on my mind after I left the shelter. I wanted her to be adopted and have the love given back to her just like she gave to me in the short time I was with her. I saw her joy having me in the kennel, and I felt sad having to leave her behind. Weeks passed, and I raised thousands of dollars for the rescue with Summer as my focus. I shared her photo over and over in hopes someone would adopt her before the event, but that wasn’t meant to be. That day, I arrived with a lot of stuff to decorate in hopes I could make Summer’s kennel more like a home for her. I brought blankets and pillows, dog toys, treats; I even brought pajamas for her and me. Summer had an indoor-outdoor kennel, so while I decorated inside, she patiently waited outside. When we finally let her in, she was excited to see the newly decorated kennel and see me again. I could tell by her reaction that she hadn’t expected something
