Puppy Love

Okay, so I love animals. I love their energy, their honesty, their directness, their sincerity. I love that they tell you what they want and when they don't get it, they find something just as interesting to want just as much. I love that they figure out how to get us to do things. I love that we think that WE train THEM. I love that they don't hold grudges unless someone beats it into them. I love that they know when we need to get up and refuse to give up until we get out of the damned bed... at least my cats do.


I hardly ever do jewelry pieces that are simply "an animal" ... even if i do do something like a lion or a wolf, the beast blurs the line between animal and human. Like in any good cartoon, I think the difference between people and critters isn't much at all once you get past the whole consonant and opposable thumb thing.
So when i do find a cool animal pin or scrap of one, I try to do a piece where you have a person relating to an animal, like this one...

This is "Puppy Love". It's about the other thing I love, which is people who love animals. I think it takes a big heart to accept an animal into your life, into your heart and let them be who they are and not who you think they should be, or worse, what you think they should be. Because, really, aren't the best relationships you have conversations that go both ways?

Which brings me to that girl up in the corner. Her name is Betty Brown and she is a dear friend of mine, as is her person, Brenda. Some son of a bitch turned Brenda's life upside down yesterday morning when he, or she, opened Brenda's Volvo and stole Betty from the parking lot of the QFC at Broadway and Pike.

Now I'm trying to be as accepting, understanding and generous as I can here. Maybe they're lonely, maybe they're homeless, maybe they were stoned out of their minds and opened the car as a goof. Maybe not. Maybe they took her thinking "Ooh, pit bull puppy! That would make me so bad-ass!" Maybe they even thought something worse, like "I could make this dog into a killer".
At this point , I really don't care. I want this dog back. I spent the day walking around Capitol Hill, violating ordinances, stapling flyers everywhere I could, talking to strangers, breaking hearts as I told people about this sweet, joyous creature and how devastated the loss of her has left my friend Brenda.

Please, If you are in Seattle, keep your eyes open. If you see this dog... She's tame, she's been chipped... about three years old, on the small side for a pit, sweet, trusting and chocolate brown with white on her nose, chest and feet, give me a call 206 714-3950. There is a reward. If you have a pet, think of how destroyed you would be to have someone take your friend away.

"Puppy Love" is party of the Carolyn Counterman collection.