Alfred and Sadie

Alfred and Sadie are rescue dogs from Spay and Save in Lafayette Hill, PA. They were surrendered by a mystery man that said he had been holding them for 5 weeks and that they were 5 weeks old at the time he gave them up. But he never specified where he got them from or the circumstances by which he acquired them. He implied they were brother and sister from the same litter. There's been little agreement over the accuracy of this claim. We're not 100% sure of their breeds, but we'll get back to that subject in a minute.

Spay and Save took care of the dogs, provided vet care including all of their necessary shots and immunizations, and then when they were old enough, they spayed Sadie and neutered Alfred. They spent several months with a foster mom, Jen, who became our contact at Spay and Save. She had received several requests to adopt just one of the dogs and not the other, but she said that in all her many years of fostering rescue puppies, that she had never seen two dogs so bonded to one another. Take one out of the room, and the other would FREAK OUT. Consistently. So she decided that they MUST be adopted together.

My wife Sonia and I had agreed that we wanted 2 puppies. Both of us being only children, we understood the loneliness and isolation of being just one. And we knew that a pair of pups would not only comfort and entertain one another, but that they'd provide twice as much fun and love for us. We had been renting an apartment that didn't allow dogs of any size for our first two and a half years in the Philadelphia area. But an incredible opportunity to own a condo through Art Wood Real Estate presented itself in March 2013, and by May, we were living in a new home. And fortunately, our new building allowed pets under the condition that they could be carried through all public portions of the building.

It was a perfect fit. When Jen first brought Alfred and Sadie to our condo, they weighed 8 pounds and 6 pounds, respectively. They loved our place and made themselves at home right away. One of the theories about their genetic composition is that they're both chihuahua-schnauzer mixes. And how appropriate, since I'm part German and Sonia is Mexican. Furthermore, Sadie looks more like a chihuahua and Alfred looks more like a schnauzer. Other theories have involved long-haired chihuahuas, west highland terriers, rat terriers, and chow-chows. I personally think they could both be the product of a very light-colored schnauzer mating with a long-haired chihuahua. We're always talking about how Alfie has many of my personality traits and Sadie has many of Sonia's.

Sonia and I had an appointment to meet with two malti-poo puppies the weekend after Jen, Alfred, and Sadie came to visit. Sonia and I talked it over, and we immediately cancelled our appointment with the malti-poos. We couldn't imagine a more perfect fit than Alfie and Sadie. So since May, Sonia, Alfred, Sadie, and I have been loving our new condo and enjoying each other's company. And while we know that adopting two puppies isn't as significant as raising children, adopted or otherwise, we both feel that this is exactly where we're supposed to be right now, and that Alfred and Sadie are teaching us that we might not be the terrible parents that we're so scared that we might turn out to be. If we ever do have human babies, they'll owe a debt of gratitude to Alfred and Sadie, our furry first-born twins.