Millie Angel

After losing our beloved Bear at 14 years of age, we went looking through
www.petfinder.com for a suitable companion for our young Standard Poodle,
Pennhurst Queen of Spain (Isabella). We looked at every young female up for
adoption throughout the entire country. The face we fell in love with turned out to
be in a shelter just 30 minutes from our home!
She had no name, just a number: 7355. Poor little 7355 was a feral (wild) dog
who was born on the streets and roamed wild with her two sisters. They had never
had a family or home to call their own. They ate by stealing, killing, scavanging or
tearing open grain sacks in barns for for food.
When I called the local animal shelter to inquire about 7355, they informed me
that she was VERY shy, scared to death actually and, because of that, nobody
wanted her. My husband and I, still feeling the pain of losing our wonderful old
girl, went to see her anyway. Having been in the shelter for three months, 7355
was only days away from euthanasia. They took us into a room and left us while
they went to fetch little 7355. The door opened and the attendant came in
dragging this poor frightened little creature behind her. Little 7355 took one look
at us and piddled in fear on the floor. Only about 9 or 10 months old, 7355 had
developed a deep fear and mistrust of humans.
We were told that she and her sisters had been trapped in cages when they went
to a barn to get more of the forbidden grain. Here she was, in the shelter, in a
cage with barking dogs and bossy people. The poor little thing was petrified!
My husband and I took one look at little 7355 and began to cry. We both said
through our tears, "We'll take her!" The attendant suggested we take her outside
to the fenced yard to see if we were compatable. We told her no thank you, we'll
be just fine.
It didn't take very long to housebreak the new little girl we called Millie Angel,
after a distant relative. The first day she "marked" everywhere in the house but
she soon got the message that that was not acceptable. She was uneducated but
very smart.
Well, little 7355 has turned out to be just about the cutest thing on the planet
and the MOST appreciative little dog we have ever had. She loves agility, as you
can see, and her favorite place to sleep is upsidedown on our bed.
Adopting a shelter dog is one of the most rewarding things we have ever done!
Below is poor little 7355 in the shelter. You can see she is sitting in a puddle of
yellow liquid fear. But isn't she just the CUTEST?

Millie's Rap
by Lisa Greene

Now Listen up you people I got somthin' ta say
It ain't easy livin' out the life of a stray
I was runnin with my posse - they's my pack and my fam
Livin' on the streets like we was out on the lamb
A frightened little street girl, my life was so tough
The food that we could find, why it was never enough
We stole some tasy chickens and some trash on the sly
And even ate some grain just to try to get by
The man he fine'ly caught me and he put me in jail
Then tha woman and her homie came and sprang me on bail
They took me to their crib and they treated me real well
They luved me up and fed me and they saved me from hell
So lissen up you people before you shed a tear
I was the one who made it and my folks hold me dear
And I'll holler from the rooftops, through the rain and the fog
That I'm Miss Millie Angel and I'm a 'jility dog!