About Terri Somme

HoneyBear

The author’s dog, Honey Bear, is a two-year-old mix. Honey Bear’s mother was rescued from the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. She was placed in a foster home, but less than two days after giving birth, she ran off. The puppies were brought to the Haven, but since they had to be bottle-fed around the clock, Terri took them home. Honey Bear quickly earned the name “Fat Girl” because as the biggest of her siblings, she would climb over them to be the first one to receive the bottle. Terri mercifully renamed her, knowing she couldn’t go through life as “Fat Girl.”

As the puppies grew and became adoptable, Terri kept Honey Bear to foster. They became each other’s constant companion, especially during the six weeks that Terri had mange, which she contracted from one of her New Orleans rescue trips. Being so miserable, she barely left the house and found relief only when Dr. T—a local veterinarian—dipped her! Honey Bear kept her sane.

Although Terri lived where there was a no pet policy, she often brought home foster dogs for a few days, an activity that was tolerated by the management. After a while, though, the neighbors started to get suspicious about Honey Bear, even though Terri told everyone she was just fostering her. Her heart knew differently.

Three times she adopted her out, but when it came time to release her, she found one excuse or another as to why it wouldn’t work out for Honey Bear. When she received a letter from the management saying that the dog had to leave, she decided to buy Honey Bear a house. In January, 2006, she became a new homeowner, and Honey Bear officially became a dog of Fairhope.

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