Happy Endings 
Mr Spock, aka "Fletcher"
Mr Spock,, aka "Fletcher" came to live with the Petersons via Dale
and Jan Lawrence and the Scottish Terrier Rescue Northwest (STRNW) in
September, 2005. He is an "immigrant", born in Germany and migrated
to Florida with his family about 5 years ago. The environment for Fletcher
wasn't suiting him well, and his mistress lovingly searched for a more
"fitting" place for him. Via the internet she found STRNW, & felt
the cooler climate in Washington state would help him thrive. Frau mom put
him in his new crate, with new bed, leash, chew toy, medical records and plane
ticket, and he flew to Seattle-Tacoma. His first family must have said a tearful
goodbye as they sent this sweet Scottie toward his new home.
We met the little guy at a STRNW Scottie picnic two days after his arrival. He was peppy & friendly, and his tail seemed to wag his whole body when anyone gave him attention. We had our 5 year old Scottie, Katie, with us at the picnic, and she seemed to befriend him more than most of the other dogs. Two days after our initial meeting we were asked if we'd be interested in adopting Fletcher. Our 14.5 year old Scottie, Max, died in July, and, though, we were still grieving , we decided to spend some more "get acquainted" time with Fletcher to see if Katie still agreed that he was "OK." We had no doubts, and though Katie covets being an "only child," she concurred that Fletcher would make a nice playmate.
Our background recommendation was in order and adoption papers and care
agreement were signed. We took the liberty to change Spock's name to Fletcher,
though I know there are others for whom he will always be Mr Spock. Since
he is age 7, our veterinarian recommended a Senior blood work panel.
The vet is puzzled over Fletcher's large water intake and by some liver enzyme
abnormalities, so we are exploring those with diet and medication. In the
meantime, Fletcher behaves as a very healthy, and active Scottie. He's settled
well into his new home and with his new housemate. He is the most curious
dog we've had during our nearly 40 years of dog family membership. Fletcher
watches everything. He sits up to watch TV; the other day he opened
the CD player to let us know he prefers "German classical music".
His other study targets include the Christmas tree, stereo speakers and,
of course, what goes on outside any window. Yesterday he started watching
the clock high on the wall in my office and was glad to be lifted up for
a closer look. Promptly he then stared at another clock in the room, until
that curiosity was satisfied. I showed him animal pictures received on the
internet, and he was all over the screen, to Mignonne's consternation, with
the nose prints to be cleaned off. He almost never barks, sleeps with Katie
in our room, and awakens us promptly at 7:00am with a low guttural sound.
(As soon as he starts talking he'll have to be enrolled in school and the
question will probably be whether to go public or private!) Outside, his
nose is always to the ground and he can spot movement well over 100 yards
off. He chews his squeaker toy, and he loves to push and snuggle with his
humans on the floor. He is a gentleman at the groomer, at the Vet and with
guests at our door.
Fletcher is still very wary of the vacuum cleaner noise so he runs off to his bed when that starts up. He's okay now with a moving broom, though. I think the key to earning this dog's love and confidence is to be gentle and consistent, and to always remember that this sensitive and curious thinker is all Scottie! He's a great dog and a joy, and we are grateful that he found us.
