Little Tellie, the biggest small dog ever

Telluride is our Jack Russell/Cairn Terrier mix.  She is also an integral part of our family but unfortunately was not featured at all in this blog during the course of Jersey's final journey.  She has gone through the process with us but didn't quite understand why our attention all of a sudden was on Jersey.  It was obvious to both of us that she didn't know what to do.  She's a small dog caught in very big circumstances and she keenly felt all that was happening.

Tellie relied on Jersey.  Yes, she depends on us to be fed and let out and she loves us but she relied on Jersey to teach her how to be a dog.

We adopted her from the Aurora, Colorado Animal Shelter three years ago about three month after the loss of another beloved dog, New Years. The shelter staff told us she had been picked up when she was spotted chasing birds in an open field.  Like most shelter dogs, she had no tags and no chip.  They waited for someone to claim her but no one came.  When I first saw her she was in a kennel and seemed to emanate a certain love which drew me in immediately.  I opened the gate of her cage and sat on the floor with her.  She immediately jumped into my lap and greeted me with excited hello's.  She was happy to have a visitor.  She was neither wiggly nor squirmy but sort of confident that she was going to go home with me.  She seemed to convey a feeling of "I like you very much.  When are we going to go home?"  I picked her up and carried her over to Alexa who was visitng with another dog.  I held out this wide eyed small dog who was a little skinny and dirty and said "I think this is the one."  We decided we would wait and if we came back and she was still there, we would adopt her and take her home.

That night, I had a dream about her.  I generally have the type of dreams we all have of flying above tree tops or forgetting the combination to my high school locekr and either wake up with a feeling of anxiety or scratching my head wondering why I can't fly when I'm awake.  This was different though. I don't remember the details of it but I know she figured prominently in the dream I had that night.

Later that afternoon, I was riding my motorcycle on E-470, a major highway by-pass around the city of Denver.  My plan was to take a ride up into the foothills and end up at Red Rocks Park.

I hadn't gone too far when I seemed to be hit with a moment of clarity.  This little dog needed us and was calling "Where are you? I thought you liked me."

I turned around, rode home, picked up Alexa and took the car back to the shelter.  Tellie was still there, and was glad we had come back to adopt her.

Tellie took to Jersey immediately.  Jersey also appeared to accept her pretty quickly.  She had missed playing with New Years and was sad her sister wasn't around anymore.  Tellie was a welcome playmate and they bonded quickly.

Jersey taught her how to be part of our family, how to rough house and play. She taught her how to  crawl under the fence and escape.  They became pals and bosom buddies. They had two very different personalities: Jersey was like the zen master teaching the eager student how to be present; how to fully be a dog.

Now, Tellie is teaching us.  She is showing us love and comfort during this difficult time.  She is showing us it's OK to miss Jersey and that she has our backs.  She is showing us how to move forward and take life one step at a time.  She's top dog now and has risen to the challenge. She is the biggest small dog that has ever found a place in my heart.