Quin

Today Michelle shares with us about Quin and their adventures in the wilderness of Oregon.

Quin is a pit-bull/great dane mix.  She is a clown but also has a gentle loving side. I named her Quin because of her harlequin coloring.  Her nickname is Quinny-Bo -Binny

Quin was around 3-5 mos. old when i got her and did a lot of sleeping at first.  She outgrew that and went through  a clumsy "china in a bull shop", non-stop-action phase. I found Quin by looking everyday on the Linn County Dog Control site.  She was found by animal control as a stray on the streets of Albany, OR.  I wanted to help rescue a dog; important to me because too many dogs are put to death in dog shelters.

I had just lost my beautiful girl Isha (boxer/sharpei mix) to a mystery illness and was feeling such a void in my life that i was actively searching for another dog to share my life with.  I saw Quin on the Linn County dog shelter site and her funny face is what drew me to her.  She has one eye that is half brown and half blue  and she looked very mischievous.

The most unexpected thing about owning a pet is the way that they so quickly win your heart and become a part of your family.  They are such good companions and like nothing more than going for a hike or bike ride whenever you ask them. 

Quin has taught me patience and acceptance.  she was very friendly to other dogs when she was a puppy but, when she came into her own, at two years of age; she began to be dog reactive.  i had to learn to accept this part of her personality and we continue to work on this.  i would never give her up because of it; kind of like you don't give up on your teenagers when they hit a certain age. 
 
She has taught me that a dog does not have to be perfect in order for me love them.  She doesn't get along well with other dogs so it has been hard to schedule our activities around this aspect.  She does eventually come to accept and like other dogs that belong to my friends and family.  I hope that i have taught her that people are, for the most part, kind and gentle and that she can trust me to take care of her and never hurt her.

Quin and I do a lot of hiking and Bike riding.  I bought a Walkie Dog attachment for my bike and she loves to run alongside my bike; sometimes she actually pulls me if i don't pedal fast enough.

She makes me smile just by being her.  She likes to wake me up by rolling around on the bed, making noises until i get up and feed her.  I am proud that she is such a loving dog to all people as she helps to change people's attitudes and their perceived notions about what a pitbull is.  No-one can walk away from her without knowing how much she loves people and just wants them to be her friend.  I have never regretted my decision to adopt Quin. 

If I were going to give advice to people thinking of bringing home a dog it would be to not adopt a dog with preconceived notions about what you think they will be like by looking at them.  I would suggest that you go and visit the dog and take them for walks and spend time with them and get to know a little about them before bringing them home.  Remember that they will not always be the cute little ball of fur that they were as puppies.  Love and kindness is the key to a happy dog.

We couldnt agree more, Michelle!  Thanks for giving Quin such a loving home!