A New Leash on Life by Suzie Carr Page B

about a second and third time, just to ensure we still stood tight together, animal protector to fellow animal protector. She never asked about the fourth date, and I didn’t throw her any additional lies. We just worked our butts off protecting the safe world for our beloved guests with event after event to raise funds. Everyone loved our cause. The donations funneled in from the poorest parts of town to the richest.
    Now with the storm, though, the donations dried up.
    I kissed Snowball’s warm nose before jumping to my feet and dealing with the mess at hand.
    A while later, as I stood staring out of the front window at the ravaged town, I wondered how the flooding would affect shelter life. Now that the town needed money to rebuild their houses, their cars, their businesses, where would the shelter get theirs?
    Melanie rounded the corner wearing an apron and wielding a wet mop. “You’re lucky. You only had a little water get in through the back wall and the side exam room. The kennels all look dry. Snowball is resting just fine on her new fluffy bed in isolation. The rest of the dogs, on the other hand, they look like they could use a break.”
    “I’m going to go see what we can do about at least getting them into the yard to play around a bit.” I pushed through the double doors and into the kennel area. The room smelled like gasoline from the generator. I rushed to the back door and pushed it open. Trevor stood on the patio smoking a cigarette and singing. His bleached hair poked out in all directions. The generator cranked a few daring feet from him.
    “I’m going to close this door tighter,” I yelled out to him. “All I smell is your cigarette. The dogs aren’t happy with you right now.”
    Trevor tossed his cigarette to the ground, crushed it out and scooped it back up in his hand without my having to ask. “Sorry about that, boss. I’ve been waiting hours. You’re at least a little proud of me, right?” He broadened his smile and opened his arms up wide.
    “I’m closing it.” I shut the door with an extra strong tug.
    He stepped back into the kennel room and shut the door behind him. “Thank God the smell is all we’ve got to worry about. The scene is unbelievable out there. I walked down to the edge of the grounds and looked down into the valley. Rooftops are floating.”
    Our view of the colorful town from atop the hill on Mulberry Street could usually put a Thomas Kincaid painting to shame. I couldn’t bring myself to look out into the valley just yet. Instead I walked back out to the waiting room where Melanie had just powered up the television, thanks to Trevor’s bravado with the generator.
    “The town is a mess. Main Street is underwater. The schools have all but drowned. There’s not a utility pole for miles that’s standing.” She pointed to the television screen. “Look, that’s St. Michael’s steeple.”
    We huddled around the twenty-inch flat screen. Our faces hung in horror at the scenes of what used to be the town center. Muddy water now covered what used to be a beautiful park touting the prettiest birch trees. A few stranded people stood on their rooftops waving at the news helicopter.
    Natalie bit her nails. “Oh my goodness, look at that lady.”
    A middle-aged lady wearing a drenched t-shirt cradled her cat under the crook of her arm and waved with her free arm to the helicopter.
    Thank goodness the cat could snuggle up to its owner, despite her being drenched and scared to the core. “I imagine there’s a whole town full of abandoned pets right now panicking on top of soaked couches and beds.” I walked away shaking my head unable to fathom the horror.
    ~ ~
    Right out of veterinary school, I worked at one of those national chain pet store hospitals where every second of the business day I cared for every imaginable breed of dog. Some would end up waiting for hours to be seen because we worked primarily on a walk-in basis. Only surgeries took precedence over the