This is our new addition, Hildegard (Hildie as a nick-name), a special-needs puppy adopted from the Denver Dumb Friends League in late August 2008 when she was 6 months old.  She is named after Hildegard von Bingen, a medieval mystic, painter, and musician.

When we adopted Hildie she was terrified of everything, including the wind.  Despite being a puppy, she was losing weight.  She weighed 25.3 lbs an, doubled her weight!  After lots of love and dedicated training we learned from certified dog trainer trainer Bernadette, Hildie is now having happy dog moments for the first time in her young life.  She dances, leaps, and hops and for the first time with her confidence growing, we have actually heard her voice.   She and our cat Buddha have become fast friends and enjoy playing ad sleeping together.  Hildie, in fact, has helped Buddha come out of his shell more.