There have been lots of things to mourn this year – celebrations canceled, milestones missed, family members lost. But if we’re choosing to look at the bright side (and we are), pet adoptions have been one of the silver linings of 2020. And Farm Charm is no exception.

We lost our beloved schnauzer Shume Strudel Schumacher back in August to lymphoma. He was the most loyal, sweet, family dog and so very good looking as schnauzers go. His eyebrows and mustache gave him the look of a mean dog, but he was the furthest thing from menacing (aside from killing two chickens as you may recall). He was Cactus’ spirit animal in every way and he was his first pet, so this was especially tough for him.

For those who have been through this, it can take a while to feel ready to open your heart again. We didn’t want to do it too soon because that feels like a slap in the face to our last dog, like we forgot him immediately (which we haven’t – we still talk about him nearly every day). But we didn’t want to wait too long because our shih-tzu Ozzy truly needs a buddy (he has become so clingy without Shume). And then there was the question about which breed to get – another schnauzer? No, there will never be another Shume. But I have allergies so we have fewer options to pick from among hypoallergenic breeds.

We were looking at PetFinder once or twice a week and kept the filters pretty tight. Then we saw this girl who was right down the road at an adoption center. Her name was Maggie, she was listed as being between 15-17 years old, and good with dogs, cats and kids – check, check, and check. She is super sweet and absolutely made of gold, but so, so skinny. I’ve been taking her on long walks and she does great so I’m a little skeptical of the age estimate.

I have a feeling she was given up as a result of COVID but that’s just my conjecture. And we changed her name to Molly. Regardless, lucky us and we hope she likes it here.

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