10/13/2026
Wow. 12 gotcha days. 12 years ago we sauntered into DeKalb County Animal Services, and walked out with two puppies. Yes.
Puppies. Moxy who was barely 6 months. Slater was barely 6 weeks. Moxy, as it would turn out, is 100% purebred amstaff.
12 years ago we saw how crowded the runs were, and something stirred in me, and I went and created Barbells For Bullies, to give more dogs like them a chance.
It’s been a long road, and expensive road: in money and time and emotions. The two of them have assuredly been responsible for most of my grays. And speaking of gray, watching the snow start peppering their face is one of the most bittersweet things I’ve felt. Knowing that we’ve sheltered and shepherded these dogs as much as they’ve done to us.
They taught my wife Lindsay and I how to take steps toward one another, even when it’s hard. Every housing decision in the last 12 years has kept them in mind. They both taught me patience, which Lord knows I needed to learn before becoming a father.
I’m a different person than I was 12 years ago walking into that shelter. I walked in a boy, fancying himself a man. Now, a dozen gotcha days later, I type this as a man; with you both sleeping soundly. I don’t know how many more gotcha days we have left, pups. But I Love You both and pray for several more.
Thank God for allowing us to meet Moxy in the parking lot; and for telling me to go back for Slater. They changed us. Forever.
-Alex
