Double Whammy – Gunther & Pepper
It was my, Jenna (AAC Adoption Counselor), first week at work when a big, black dog got transferred from Star Valley. He hops out of the car and as I saw him through the window Though “Oh sh**.” He peered into my soul with those droopy, irresistible eyes looking for comfort during a scary time in his life and it was game over. Gunther was my dream dog. All of my friends and family called me crazy, poking fun that I didn’t even last a week at my new job before caving gin and adopting an animal.
Prior to the AAC, Gunther sat in the Star Valley shelter for a few months after him, his baby mama and all of their puppies were surrendered after their owners who were breeding them got a divorce. All of them got adopted almost immediately while Gunther sat in the kennel awaiting his forever family. Baby G fit in immediately at our household and myself and fiancé, George. It didn’t take long to decide that he was our dog and we became attached at the hip. We immediately upgraded to a King size bed because G was obviously never sleeping on the floor. Gunther is a 100 lb dog stuck in a 10 lb body, he welcomes foster dogs into his home whenever is needed and he puts a smile on everyone’s face who meets him. He is our pride and joy and we couldn’t have imagined a more perfect first dog. I often ask myself “what I did before I had Gunther?”
Then came along Pepper, aka Pep-dog, aka Peppie, aka Pepperoni, aka Baby Smush Face. Virginia and myself went to Lucky’s Place of Star Valley to pull some more dogs for the AAC. We met who we wanted and had room for one more. One of the volunteers mentioned a dog named Midnight. We had walked right by her without inquiring and I still can’t believe how we had missed her originally. We met her and immediately knew she was the one for us. At this point George and I were fostering dogs that we thought would be a good fit. It wasn’t until I brought Midnight/Kit Kat to an adoption drive and she was THE most tolerant dog I had ever met. Which says a lot comparing to Gunther. She patiently laid on the floor and let another puppy sleep on top of her the entire time. We had to foster her. After a week in we began taking name suggestions and it was game over. Pepper was her name for her fiery personality and brindle accents. She has no sense of urgency and can tree a squirrel for an entire day. Despite her being half the size of Gunther, she makes sure to protect him from anything that comes his way. We could not have asked for a better second dog to the family.
Gunther and Pepper were both witnesses at our wedding and people joke that it was actually their own wedding. I will forever be grateful for the joy the Animal Adoption Center has brought into our lives.
