Hepcat, OSFO and I stood on Seventh Avenue in front of Animal Kind and contemplated whether we should adopt Roscoe (who we later named Stanley). A couple stood nearby waiting for us to make a decision.

“We have the same kind of dog at home,” the woman said. “We’re thinking of getting another.”

“The dog we have is perfect. A perfect dog. He could use a companion,” the man said.

The pressure was on. Someone else wanted the dog. I looked at OSFO. That was a no-brainer: of course she wanted the dog. I looked at Hepcat: it was obvious that he was falling for little Roscoe.

And me?

Despite the fact that I’d never owned a dog in my life. Despite the fact that we’re not allowed to have dogs in our apartment building (a fact that worried me a great deal). Despite the fact that owning a dog meant a world of unknowns, I found myself wanting to share our home with this adorable little dog.

Who could blame me? He stared up me with these dark, gorgeous searching eyes. He and OSFO looked so cute together. Hepcat, who had dogs as a child (and grew up on a farm with cows and goats and cats and even a pet crow) was all goo goo eyes for the little pup (who, it turned out, was 2-years-old).

“We’ll take him,” I said to Charlie, who runs Sean Casey Animal Rescue.

“Great,” he said. “You just need to fill out a few forms…”

To be continued…