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No we have not lost our minds, yes we have enough room, yes we can still go out of town if we want to, yes we have considered the extra cost and effort, and yes, we are sure we want her.
There. That's out of the way to all of those who might have asked any of the questions that might match any of the answers above. Now on to more positive things.
It all started back around Thanksgiving when John's parents came down to stay with us. They had to bring 4 golden retriever puppies with them because they were of selling age and hadn't been sold yet. They hoped that being down here would open them up to new customers. Now, I have seen several of their litters of puppies, and have never felt a connection to one of them. They were just cute little balls of fluff that were meant for someone else. Also, all of the thoughts we had recently had about getting a third dog had disappeared when Ibanez demonstrated herself to be violently unsocial.
At first, the most noticeable thing about the visit was Ibanez freaking out about having so many visitors invading her space. It would be like dumping 4 toddlers in a teenager's bedroom and disappearing for a while. Then I started noticing something else. I noticed that one of the puppies was cuter than the others. That she was smaller and yellower than the others (the only way I like a golden retriever. Some of theirs are huge and bright red...) but that she had no fear around any of the other dogs, including Mosrite and Ibanez. Of course, once I noticed all this, I fell in love with her.
It turns out she was the runt of the litter and almost died when she was born. At 12 weeks you could still scoop her up with one hand, while her brothers required both hands. We spent the rest of the weekend getting to know her and helping Ibanez to deal with her. Tammy and JD saw that we loved her and offered her to us, but we ended up deciding that since their dogs are a real business for them, it wasn't right for us to just take her. We missed her when they left (actually, Ibanez was relieved, but I digress...) but figured that we were fine, and that it was better for her to be sold to a family that really wanted her. They left on the understanding that if they couldn't sell her, they would keep her for us until Christmas.
Well, fate was on our side, I guess, because they couldn't sell her. One of their other dogs exhibited a particularly violent streak when they took her home and played so rough that the little puppy ended up with a scar over her eye. I think Tammy and JD fell in love with her as much as we did because they seemed perfectly willing to take care of her and start to train her until we could come get her.
So they kept her on their back porch and started training her and teaching her her name. (Of course, she is named after another guitar. It doesn't seem to roll off the tongue too easily at first, but then Ibanez didn't either for a long time. We just decided we liked it better than Hofner or Fender, and Kelly had already warned us not to use Gibson becuase Justin might have plans for it...) I kept trying to prepare myself that we would be having another dog, but it wasn't very difficult since she was already trained to be outside, and we wouldn't be forcing to her to adapt to an apartment. (Have I mentioned lately that I love living in a house?)
Anyway, we brought her home with us this last Tuesday. I cannot describe how good she is. Even my mom, who is known for being dog-wary said "Wow, she just sits and lets you pet her!" She rode all the way home in the front seat, and even waited to use the "bathroom" until we got home. She whined for 5 minutes her first night in bed in the garage, but has gone straight to bed every night since. She doesn't love being in her little dog pen in the yard, but we don't quite trust the other two yet. She barks when she is inside, but just because she wants to play so badly. She loves her big brother and sister and doesn't quite know that she is not as big as they are.
Mosrite doesn't exhibit any noticeable differences. He's like "The more the merrier, just don't pet her more than me." He really wants to play with her too, and we are proud of him for restraining himself. He can fit her whole head in his mouth, but never bites down. When he is feeling particularly rambunctious, he chases Ibanez and when he reaches her, he drags her across the yard by her neck. He reminds me of a Kindergartner who is disappointed when he newborn baby sister can't ride bikes and wrestle with him yet. They will be good buddies when she gets big enough.
As for Ibanez, she exhibits classic middle child behaviors, but she is really warming up to her. She nipped and snapped at her a few times the first night, and was embarrassed to be in trouble, but has since become watchful and protective over her. She watches Epiphone constantly and will pace behind her and try to herd her to where she wants her in the yard. They are even started to play somewhat. I think their relationship will grow...
So yes, we love her and she belongs in our family. She fits our definition of belonging by "falling into our laps and feeling right" just like every other major event that has happened to us!
PS Who knew I could be so prolific? This is my 100th post since I started list blog a little over a year and my 7th post since I went on Christmas break!
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