Sammie and Lina
Adopted July 12, 2023, ~ Burbank Animal Shelter
by Kristeen Hernandez
Blessings come in many forms; most things have a positive element in the long run. One of those blessings, for me, anyway is, that many people are leery or skeptical of Pitbulls.
March 19th, I had to send my beautiful 14½-year-old pitty girl Luna over the Rainbow. As I’m sure you can imagine, it was a decision beyond difficult, filled with guilt; guilt to make her stay in my selfishness, knowing how unfair it would be to ask her to delay leaving beyond what she could physically bear. And guilty for the self-doubt of being too hasty. Her vet assured me I had not waited too long nor, was I being impulsive. It was the right time as she could still carry herself with the grace and dignity God afforded her.
At my age (70) I felt it would be unfair to begin with another animal, but as time passed there was such emptiness in my life, I thought, well it doesn’t hurt to just take a peek. I contacted the rescue I got my Luna from, but none of the dogs suggested, although very nice, well, they just weren’t “My dog”.
Monday, July 10th, on a whim, while on my way to Walmart, I stopped in at Burbank Animal Shelter; they were closed and I thought, okay I’ll just wait on the rescue lady to find the right dog for me. Once home I felt drawn to the shelter’s website, just to look, nothing serious, just admiring their dogs and cats.
What did I find? Not one but 2 beautiful pitties. On further reading I found these two 5-year-olds’ were a bonded pair; the owner was forced to surrender them 9 months earlier due to terminal illness. Who keeps Pitbulls for 9 months, these two must be really something special???
I made an online appointment for the following afternoon to meet Sammie (m) and Luna (f) although knowing I couldn’t keep the name Luna; God made me accidentally hit the “i” instead of “u” while submitting the adoption application, rendering her name as “Lina: that was definitely a sign, I definitively knew the pair would be coming home with me.
With two 75lb Pitbulls in the backseat, I drove up the Canyon. All of a sudden Sammie sticks his head between the seats right next to my face, my 1st thought “What did I do, I don’t really know anything about these dogs” In less than a split second, Sammie rests his head on my shoulder and we drove home cheek to cheek.
Based on having many dogs throughout the years, after a thorough inspection of the house and yards I expected shyness. Nope! Sammie and Lina acted like they’d lived here their entire lives. In the 2 months since we became family, they are no longer just a bonded pair, we are a throuple, lol. They’re so well-behaved, enthusiastic, and eager to master new skills, even learning to swim in the “cement pond”.
Sammie and Lina are the sweetest most loving dogs anyone could imagine and I want to thank Burbank Animal Shelter for having the foresight to see the beautiful souls these two possess. I also want to thank everyone who walked past these two marvelous animals and kept going without a second thought of adopting them. But mostly, every day I thank Sammie and Lina for waiting 9 long months for me.
