We’ve got another milestone to celebrate this weekend: October 8, is Dobby’s “gotcha day” and since we don’t know when his day of birth actually is, it’s also his unofficial birthday!

I brought this handsome boy home four years ago this weekend, which just seems crazy that it’s been that long already. That also means it’s been four years since I moved back to South Dakota too, since I got him only a few weeks after I came back. Crazy to think about all that’s happened in the last four years! And it’s safe to say Dobby has made such a big impact in my life in that amount of time too.

I’ve said it before, but when I moved back to South Dakota, I was in a really bad place. I was sad to leave my friends and my job in Virginia, but I also knew I couldn’t stay. I finally had the courage to leave a bad relationship, and I knew I had to get as far away from there as I could. And after being away from my family for 6+ years, all I wanted was to be back home.

However, I was not about to move back into my parent’s house. I still wanted my independence, but I’ll admit I was also a little afraid to live by myself. That’s where Dobby comes into play!

We always had a dog growing up and I’d been itching for years at that point to get a dog of my own. Moving into my own place, it finally felt like the time to do it. I went to the Humane Society in Sioux Falls, and my brother still lived there at the time so he joined me in going to find the perfect pup.

Now, Dobby was far from perfect – I’ll be the first to admit that. He had also come from an abusive home, and he was very timid and scared, especially of men. But he took to me right away, and I saw something in that boy that told me he needed me just as much as I needed him. So, I decided to take him home with me.

It was hard at first. He had a lot of bad habits that needed to be broken, and I seemed to be the only one he trusted for a while. He was even terrified of my dad and would bark and growl at him every time he saw him for several weeks after I brought him home. And those who know my dad know he’d never hurt a fly!

But after a while we fell into a new routine. He became a lot more trusting when he knew no one was going to hurt him anymore and that he finally had somewhere to call home. I truly do believe we helped each other heal in those first few months together.

Flash forward a few months and along came Dan! I warned Dan the first time he came to my house that Dobby might growl at him, and even though Dobby was a little hesitant at first, he took to Dan a lot quicker than he took to most other men. I think that was one of the first signs I knew I had a keeper! 😉 Dobby absolutely adores Dan, and even though Dan acts all tough love around him, I’ve caught him sneaking Dobby some table scraps and snuggling up to him when he didn’t think I was looking. 

Dobby has come such a long way since I first brought him home, and I love him more and more every day. I thank the lucky stars that he came into my life when he did, and I don’t know what I’d do without him. It’s hard to say for sure how old he is, so I don’t know how many years we’ll have together yet, but here’s to hoping for many, many more!

Happy gotcha day big man!

Until next time! 🙂

Megan Reiffenberger