A doggy decision

For those of you hanging on the edge of your seat, waiting to see if we follow through on our doggy daydreams, (and if so--what we will end up with.)  We have made our decision, and have decided on a yellow lab.  My sister has a yellow lab that is just over a year old, and just after they got the puppy a few of their circumstances changed and it has been harder than they thought to be the dog loving family they had dreamed of.  While Rachel and I are obsessed with the puppy stages, Sam and I had discussed recently how much easier it might be to start with an older dog that is already house trained for one.  So when I was chatting with my sister and she admitted that they were very close to deciding that it was best to try and find a new home for their dog, I voluntarily mentioned that we could take their dog, Cali. (named after their family vacation spot-California).  Suddenly things fell into place for both of us.  They were relieved, not only do they get the much needed break from being dog owners, but they get to give Cali to a family that they know will treat it well, and will also get to have visiting rights.  And we get a dog, and a chance to test all of our knowledge gained from watching daily episodes of Dog Whisperer. 

We are both happy.  And my family thinks we are crazy.  My brother (the only other person in the family with a dog) can't believe she is giving her dog away). And everyone wonders why I am up for taking a rambunctious, large, hard to control dog, voluntarily.  For the record, Lacie and I both think Cali is a great dog: comes when called, house trained, sleeps in her crate, will play fetch for hours, not aggressive towards people or other dogs.  Most of her "annoying" behaviors comes from the fact that she is still a young dog with lots of energy to burn, and just needs more opportunities to burn it, in addition to just a little bit more time spent on obedience training.   To prove myself (and to stand up for Cali) I have taken a challenge from my little brother Trevor, to have a well behaved dog by the time we go camping in July.

• Cali will sit calmly by our side when other dogs walk by
• Cali will walk obediently at our side on walks around the campground. 
• Cali will not jump on anyone

Wish me Luck!

(for the record he had two other challenges that I did veto--his other two complaints just seemed a bit unfair--one was knocking anything over (with her tail) and rolling in every mud puddle that she sees.  Hey she is a lab with a long wagging tail, and Lacie has already warned me that she loves splashing in any amount of water she sees, including her water bowl.  Who am I to rain on her parade? :-)


Okay, so while Rachel is on board with us finally getting a dog, honestly, she is devastated that we aren't getting a puppy.  She heard us talking about having Cali spayed before we get her so she wouldn't have puppies and ever since then Rachel's brain (and heart) is hard at work to find a compromise.  I love that she isn't just stuck on the same whiny complaint "but I want a puppy", she is whole heartedly trying to find something that could work for all of us.  I think she figured out early on that at least Cali was a girl dog, so maybe she would have puppies someday--but the talk of a surgery to end that was going to slash that dream.   Here are a few of the other ideas she has come up with.  She mentions them at random times, just proof that it is always on the back of her mind. 

• "Don't make her get the surgery, she's too nice of a dog not to let her have puppies"
• (we explained that when dogs have puppies they don't have just one, they have many, and we aren't ready to take care of a bunch of dogs)
• Do you not like puppies, mom?
• Is there a surgery that the Vet can do that will make it so Cali will only have just one puppy?"
• Told her no, and also explained that problems can happen when having puppies, where the mom, or the puppies can die, and since we don't have experience, it isn't a good  idea.
• "I know, how about we take Cali to the Vet to deliver her puppies and then we can bring them home and put them in a box in our front yard that says "Free puppies, just leave 1"  (she wants to keep one puppy of course, but knows we we have to find a home for the rest.)

One thing is for sure, this little girl does deserve a puppy, so if all goes well with Cali then we will get Rachel her own puppy in the next year as well.