One of the cool things about my co-host Sarah, is that she came up with the idea of featuring one of the dogs or cats at the Jasper County Animal Rescue League & Humane Society in a feature called “The Real House Pets Of Jasper County.” We do this feature every Monday morning just after 8 when the Director of JCARL comes our studio with one of the adorable dogs or cats up for adoption. This past Monday she brought by a cute little Beagle mix that I really wanted to take home with me. It’s difficult to do as I live in an apartment where we have to come up with a HUGE damage deposit and our rent us upped $20 per month for the privilege of having a pet. This is hard for me and my significant other at this time but maybe we’ll bite the bullet and have a pet in the future. Another problem is that I want a dog and my lady wants a cat. Growing up in Newton our family always had dogs and never a cat so a kitty would be an adjustment for me. My first dog was Annie, a cute and cuddly Boston Terrier that did not have a pug nose. After that, when I was working at a radio station in Pella I adopted a dog that I named Gladys because she had a giant tail and when she wagged it she had a “Glad-Ass.” After that I adopted another dog, Bud. I had become a board member of the Animal Rescue League and would occasionally head into the room where the strays were kept. I still remember the first time I saw Bud. His fur was all matted and it looked like he needed a bath. What can I say, I fell in love with Bud but, at that time, I didn’t want the responsibility of taking care of a dog. So, the Director at the time Jana Deaton, suggested I pay for Bud to be groomed and trimmed and, with that, he might be more adoptable. I can still see Bud coming back from the groomer looking spiffy and ready to find his forever home, he even had a red bow on his collar. After a few more weeks with Bud at the shelter Jana called me and asked me if I wanted to adopt Bud, because no one had still not chosen him to be their pet and it was almost time for him to be “put down.” And so, I adopted Bud. Since I was living with my parents at the time we shared responsibilities taking care of Bud. When I moved to Ames and then later Waterloo I was living in apartments that didn’t allow pets. So my Mom & Dad kept Bud until my parents passed away and my sister in Portland, Oregon took Bud in for the final years of his life. The last dog I had was a St. Bernard named appropriately enough, Barni. Yes a female dog with an “I” on the end of her name. She was a wonderful dog who, when she was full grown, would still try to my “lap dog.” She had no idea how big she was. Some people are intimidated by big dogs but I found Barni and most other big dogs have hearts of gold. The sad thing I learned about Barni, and other big dogs, is that don’t always live a very long life. She only lived to be 6 but we had some wonderful years together.