Mr. Miggs’ Story
Hello! My name is Dr. Jessica Ottnod, a Veterinary Oncologist with Oakland Veterinary Referral Services in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. I want to share the special story of how my dog, Mr. Miggs, became part of my life. I believe destiny was at work to bring us together.
Mr. Miggs is originally from Alabama’s gulf coast. He somehow made his way to a small kill shelter that was not able to take in many stray dogs. Fortunately, the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago, IL, is a fantastic organization that sends out vans all over the country with a mission to rescue dogs from kill shelters. Mr. Miggs happened to be one of the lucky few.
In November 2013, I lost my pit bull, Andre Lopez, and was devastated. It took me until December 2015 to feel ready to consider adopting another dog. One of the first places I looked was in Michigan City, Indiana, where I drove to meet a woman with a rescued Brussels Griffon. For whatever reason, my heart told me that this was not the dog for me.
When I was halfway between Detroit and Chicago, I spontaneously thought, “Why not take a long weekend trip to Chicago?” I headed to Chicago and found a cheap hotel in an area of Chicago where I had never been before. The next morning, I headed out to breakfast and somehow took a wrong turn, which led to my getting very lost. As I started to walk back, hoping to find the right street, I found myself in front of the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago.
Even though I had been to Chicago many times before, I never knew this place existed (which makes sense as I had never been in that part of Chicago). The shelter wasn’t open at that hour, so I decided to come back later in the day. I almost didn’t return, thinking perhaps I wasn’t ready for a new pet after all. I finally convinced myself there was no harm in simply looking.
After walking through the entire shelter (or so I thought), I found they just didn’t have the right dog for me and started for the exit. On the way, a large family looking at a puppy blocked the way out, so I headed down a different hallway. Suddenly, I noticed a group of cages I had missed earlier, and there he was – Mr. Miggs!
At first glance, I thought Mr. Miggs was a puppy. I wanted an adult dog so I didn’t think I would be interested, but something about him brought me back to his cage to review his paperwork. I was so excited when I saw that he was actually about 3 years old.
Mr. Miggs was emaciated, had no hair around his ears, no hair on his belly (from a prior chronic flea infestation), and had tapeworms, but he was beautiful in my eyes!
The shelter volunteer took him out of the cage so that we could get to know each other a little better outside. When I sat on one of the benches with a leash in my hand, Mr. Miggs immediately jumped onto my lap and looked at me. You probably guessed by now that I took him, just as it was meant to be.
Mr. Miggs and I are now inseparable. When he isn’t busy vacationing with me up North, coming to work with me on a daily basis, visiting the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus, going to Orion Dog Park to meet new friends, chilling in his stroller, or enjoying Detroit in the summertime, he is curled up next to me watching TV. He is my best friend.
With all of the odd coincidences that had to occur to bring us together, I firmly believe that Mr. Miggs was sent to me for a reason–he is part of my destiny. Mr. Miggs has been one of the few consistent things in my life, and he is truly my angel and saving grace. I can only hope to continue giving him as much unconditional love and affection as he has given me, which is so very easy to do because he’s so very lovable!
