A good friend of mine has recently decided that she will be adopting a new dog. Now, I'm an animal pusher, by which I mean that I want everyone around me to have and enjoy pets of all kinds. I can't help it; I just need to share the love. So I'm estatic. I can't wait for her to get a dog.

It's got me thinking about when I adopted Freda from the local shelter. She was a sad, little thing. About 10 pounds under weight, she had heartworms and was obviously anxious about being in the kennel. Still, she came up to the gate of the kennel, wagged her tail and gently placed her paw on the gate of the kennel (this is something she still does today when she wants attention...just gently places her paw on my arm...oh, it's adorable). I just knew she was going to be my dog. When I got her home later that day, she just followed me around my apartment. Problems started though when I first tried to feed her. She just wouldn't eat. Despite being so skinny, she would only lick a piece of food and walk away. For two or three days this went on. I gave her pieces of cheese just to get her to eat something. Finally, I figured out that she would eat from my hand. So every night, I sat down with her and a bowl of dog food. I fed her one piece of dog food at a time until at least half of the bowl was gone. It was so sad, but to be honest, I enjoyed the bonding experience and I think it set me up as Freda's "person" from there on out.

Today, Freda is still a picky eater. She finishes a bowl of food every two to three days, but she's up to a healthy weight and has a good amount of energy. I've read that Siberian huskies often require less food than most dog breeds and her veterinarian doesn't seem to be bothered by her eating habits, so I've stopped worrying about it. I think the important thing is to just do the best for your dog that you can and things will eventually work out.