Dear Editor,
June 1 of last year was a bad day for Phyllis and me. Our
beloved lady Springer spaniel, Jackie, whom we’d raised from a
puppy of six weeks, left us at age 14 due to cancer.
Dear Editor,
June 1 of last year was a bad day for Phyllis and me. Our beloved lady Springer spaniel, Jackie, whom we’d raised from a puppy of six weeks, left us at age 14 due to cancer.
After an Internet search for a puppy and a survey of Springer rescue sites, both of which came up empty, I decided to take a tour of the San Martin Animal Shelter.
As I walked among the cages of many hopeful animals, I stopped at one where a resident with the familiar brown eyes, furiously-wagging stubby tail, and liver-and-white coat typical of a Springer resided. I read the card on the cage. A male, neutered.
I asked the shelter worker to let the dog out. She did, and the dog walked well and seemed healthy, and was quite affectionate. I called Phyllis at work and asked her if she wanted the dog. She demurred, as she was still grieving for Jackie, and said perhaps she’d drive up with me to take a look the next day.
I hung up and told the shelter worker I’d take the dog. After a vet’s exam and a microchip insertion, we rode home, and he met his new mistress a few hours later. Over a year later, with none of the problems one endures with a puppy, like housebreaking and chewing, that stray has become our constant, loving companion, Daniel the Spaniel, aka “Danny Boy.”
The proposed cutback in hours (or even closure of the shelter) is a slap in the face to the dedicated volunteer group Friends of the San Martin Animal Shelter, and the reassignment of the director for speaking his mind in support of the group is just plain wrong.
Isn’t it bad enough that the County Shelter doesn’t service the needs of the citizens of Gilroy? When last I checked, the city of Gilroy is located within Santa Clara County. Now the county wants to cut back the hours, or even close the shelter? This is simply not acceptable.
I applaud the efforts of County Supervisor Don Gage to fight this funding cutback. Don, in your efforts to save us from the “North County-always-comes-first” syndrome, please remember that you speak not only for your citizens, but also for those who have no voice.
Robert T. Dillon (and Danny Boy), Gilroy
The Golden Quill is awarded occasionally for a
well-written letter.
