Recently, while we were hiking through Spain, Sami was staying with her babysitters, Martin and Wendy. While there she lost two pounds and had many hikes through the woods off-leash with another dog they were watching, an older Labrador. 

We cut our hike a little short to get home to our baby girl. Though she was very happy to see us, we noticed that she was quite depressed her first week home. She was really missing her playmate. Wanting her to be a happy and healthy girl, we decided to look for and adopt a minion for her.

We did a ton of research looking for the right fit and in the end I sent a message to the Second Chance rescue online site asking that the site administrator keep us in mind for dogs in our area that met our criteria: no more than 4 years old, no more than 6 kilos in weight, sterilized if possible, and within traveling distance so that Sami could meet them.

Within an hour of sending that e-mail I received a response from Lisa. The site administrator, Evelyn, had contacted her and she had called around to the rescue shelters in our area and found a pup that met our criteria. She sent me the information and offered to meet us at the shelter to assist with translation, she speaks excellent French and has lived here since childhood. We thought that was a very generous offer. One we gratefully accepted!

Next she offered to drive us there as the place is a bit of a challenge to find. We accepted that offer as well and on the drive to Perpignan yesterday found that she is a wealth of information about EVERYTHING! We are so grateful to her for her generosity, helping us find our new addition and for all of the helpful tips she has offered.

Once we arrived at the shelter, she easily navigated the conversation translating for both Alan and I as well as the shelter president and the on-site administrator. We introduced Sami to Lou (whose name was Leo when we met him) and they got along so well that we decided Lou would definitely be the right addition to the family. 

He was listed as a MinPin X, but we think that there is more Corgi than MinPin in his ancestry. He is absolutely adorable, very lovey and cuddly. He seems to be housebroken and is great on a leash, even the double leash walking alongside Sami. They played together all day and Sami seemed happy and excited all day long.

So Christmas came early for Sami, who is enjoying her new minion, and for Lou who is enjoying having a family.

Lou’s ear span is twice the width of his body!

Lou playing on the terrace.

Sami is thinking “What is my minion doing in Daddy’s lap?”