Scarlett, the Brindle Chicken

by Mabel Rodriguez

First thing I did when I moved to Austin in 2014? I got a kitten—pretty much immediately. I’d been dying to get a cat for ages! And now that I had graduated from college and was out on my own, it was the first move I made. My best friend, with whom I had moved in, got herself one, too. They came from the same litter—brother and sister—and we sat and watched them do nothing for about three days.

It was everything I wanted and more! The kittens brought playfulness and personality and fun into the apartment and helped me through those initial post-grad humps.

But after a while, life got very real and very hard…and it suddenly felt a little too easy to just hide out at home with my cats…like a cat lady…at twenty-four years old.

Around this same time, I began to take note of something... Was it just me, or was I seeing dogs everywhere in this town? It didn’t take long to make up my mind. I needed to get in on this dog game. Surely, it would be the best way to get me active, social, and out of the house!

It was no question of how I would go about getting a dog. Adopting was the only legitimate option I could consider. I did a little research and found an event coordinated by the San Antonio Humane Society and drove down there the first chance I got.

Walking into the kennel, I put my guard up. I knew that I would be faced with several adorable faces, and I would have to stay strong to pick just one. But that lasted all of one minute, because upon entering, the first pup I saw caught my eye—and my heart. She was this skinny little brindle pit mix with white paws and the most excited expression a pup could have. On the door of her kennel, a card read “Winter.” I stepped close and held out my hand, and she eagerly met me with licks and a tail wag. And that was it.

Thirty minutes later, I’d signed the papers—“Winter” was mine! It would be another couple of weeks before I could take her home, since she was brand new to the shelter and still had to undergo her spay surgery. But the shelter allowed me to come visit in between, and she was overjoyed every single time I’d stop by. Jumping and licking my whole face. She'd been found on the side of the road at three months old, and she was severely underweight, but she was the happiest pup—a scrappy little survivor. I knew just what to name her: Scarlett. After Scarlett O’Hara, of course, my favorite literary heroine, because she never let anything or anyone get her down.
Scarlett has brought the activity and socialization into my life that I’d hoped for—and so much more. In that first puppy year, I dove headfirst into all things dog training. We went to puppy kindergarten each week, practiced walking on the leash and all sorts of tricks, went everywhere we could so she could be socialized properly, and made so many wonderful friends along the way. The kitties took a little while to get used to her, but now I’m happy to report they all tolerate each other very well. Scar makes me laugh with her hilarious free spirit, comforts me when I need a good cuddle, and “protects” me when I hit the trails (I mean she LOOKS tough, but she’s really a chicken—which is where she got her nickname: Chicken Nugget).

We’re coming up on five years together this December and, honestly, the time has really flown by. Scarlett has made Austin all the more vibrant for me, and I am grateful every day for that little Chicken Nugget. Life’s a lot easier with her around!