Restart

It seems longer than it's been since I've posted and like much of life, so much has happened! We had a lovely Memorial weekend, but it was odd being dogless. The flip side was nice though—there were no issues about what to do and when, nor how to accomplish it with a dog. And then the phone call about the aussie-lab puppies...

A friend joined me to look at the five pups. She's a "puppy aficionado," so I'm uncertain whether it was advantageous to bring her along or not! Talk about aiding and abetting!

The pups were kept in a barn stall and were in the process of being weaned from their mom. The mama dog is absolutely wonderful: very petite, very nurturing, very attentive. Her five pups were a mix of her and her handsome consort: two black girls, a black merle boy (the only boy), a brown merle girl, and a tri-colored girl. The tri was already spoken for, so the others were available for consideration.

I fell for a little black girl who exhibited typical lab characteristics—happy go-lucky and friendly, such a delightful dufus! Yet I found the little brown merle girl interesting too. Initially the brown merle was a bit too independent for my liking, but as I watched her quietly explore, I became quite smitten. When she tuckered, she came over and laid down beside me. What's not to like?

Four days later, I took my husband (resigned and silent) out to see them. [Can we have a shaft of sunlight beaming down on us and heavenly music playing?] I have never seen someone do such a complete 180! He kept exclaiming how cute the puppies were while he played and laughed and patted them. The little brown merle took a shine to him and for the next hour, stayed by his side. So guess who we're bringing home? The posted picture is from my first visit when she was six weeks old and just about to konk out from an hour's worth of play.

It's been nearly two weeks since we've seen her; we wanted her a solid eight weeks old. I get to pick her up Friday morning and my same puppy-friend is coming along. We don't have a name yet, though the list of potential names is long. I'm excited to see how much she's changed in that time. All the other puppies are gone except for the little tri girl, so luckily our pup still had her sibling and mama there for comfort.

Last night I attended an orientation for puppy training and classes begin in two weeks. I have a stack of puppy books laying in the breakfast nook. I'm dreaming, thinking, stressing, happily contemplating all things puppy. More later when she's joined the fold!