My Planned Foster Fail - Frankie

By Tracy Kirton

I had wanted a second dog for a while. Fate intervened when I came across Manitoba Mutts purely by accident. My kids were exceptionally excited at the prospect of another dog, my husband…not so much. But I had a plan, and it was a simple one.  I told my husband we were going to foster a dog (I just didn’t tell him the part about me never giving the dog back to MMDR). I had met Frankie briefly at one of the adoption fairs for only a few minutes. She gave me a kiss and her blue eyes made me melt. A few weeks later, MMDR had a new pregnant mom coming in so I thought it was a good time to take Frankie home to make room for the mom and the upcoming puppies. The adoption papers were already sent in while my husband was still telling everyone she was our foster dog.

Frankie was a happy go lucky pup from the get go. She was never shy or scared, she made herself at home right away. However, Max, my other dog, was not so impressed with Frankie’s enthusiasm. Max has a pretty low energy level so Frankie was an eye opener to him. Frankie thinks life is a party. Now Frankie is the typical little sister. Max loves her most of the time and they have a blast together. My absolute favourite part of having Frankie and Max is watching them wait by the door for my three kids to come home from school.  As soon as they see my children, their doggy eyes light up. To witness the love between children and their pets is precious and I wish every child could experience this. 

Frankie was brought to MMDR by a pilot that couldn’t bear the thought of leaving her behind because he had heard she was going to be shot. So we are forever grateful to this man and MMDR for saving her. It’s not always easy having two dogs but when you think about what could have been, everything else seems inconsequential.  She is where she belongs. She is extremely loved; spoiled and adored by all of us, yes, even my husband. 

I knew I was a successful “failure” when my hubby said to the kids, “You know the dog is one of your Christmas gifts, right?”