Love at First Bark, a review

I think we all know my overwhelming desire to have a puppy. And if you don’t… I want a puppy. Very badly. 

That being said, it should come as no surprise that I jumped at the chance to read Love at First Bark by Julie Klam.  Love at First Bark is Klam’s canine rescue memoir in which the reader follows her through three different rescue stories: Morris, the dog found tied to a street sign in NYC; Clementine Eve Bows, a terrier with a neurological disorder; and Jarhead and Paul Leo, who she helped rescue during a trip to New Orleans a few years after Katrina. 

I enjoyed following Julie through her journeys, but as an individual who hasn’t rescued any animal (aside from starfish on vacation) I found it hard to fully understand and relate to the subtitle, “How saving a dog can sometimes help save yourself.” That is until I read the line that summed everything up, “I had always felt like any dog that I took care of would’ve done the same thing for me if it could, and in fact by rescuing them they filled my heart in such a way that I was rescued right back.”

At that point the book had me. I got it. I understood. While I haven’t rescued a dog and experienced that first hand, I have experienced the love that a dog can give, the unconditional love that makes you believe and know that could they help you, in a second they would. That love comes from any dog you develop a relationship with (or really meet just once), not just the ones who are rescued.

Julie Klam definitely got me thinking more about animal rescue.  Someday, when we are in a place where we can have pets, I plan to look into ways that we too can help dogs who have been either abandoned or lost. 

This was a paid review for BlogHer Book Club, but the opinions expressed are my own.