First, you should know that when we got married I made a deal with Dave; "Buy me a house, and we'll get a dog." This was back in my 20s when homeownership seemed a million miles away and nearly impossible. Our path was leading into New York City, so this deal, on my end, seemed pretty empty.
Our path lead west instead, and we're in our second house bought together. And he looks at me and says, "now can I have a dog?"
Truthfully, I am not what you would call an animal person.
We had one dog in my family and that was when I was in kindergarten. He was a huge German Shepard and I was terrified. Terrified! Ever since, I've really disliked dogs, especially when they do stuff like sniff your crotch, lick or bark -- oh, and drool. Gross.
But, okay, some of them are kinda cute. In Rhode Island, I babysat a dog for a week and I loved it. Her name was Zoomie and she had a horrible, abused past, so she was especially kind and sensitive if play got too rough for timid, little me.
So, fast forward to this spring. David hears about some dogs in his office that are used for research. I'm not sure for what, but once they age-out of the research, they are able to be adopted. We talked to a bunch of families who have adopted them and they had great things to say about the sweet, little dogs. They're beagles, around 4-years-old and 20ish lbs, and strictly trained not to bark or bite. They grow up in pens inside a lab, so they're pretty sheltered and amazed by things like stairs, grass and snow.
It all kind of breaks my heart, which is how he got me. I'm a big-ol' softie, after all.
I have a million concerns and unknowns, this being my first foray into dog-ownership. So, I've made it clear that this dog will be Dave's responsibility until we've all got some experience. (I'm reading up on the subject.) Dave had several dogs in his childhood, so he's our resident "expert."
I dunno. This all seems a little crazy. But, at the same time, it's these crazy events that make life interesting. The dog will shake up a lot of things in our little family, so, what the hell, right?
The timing is the most troubling part. He's coming the same week as all my family for Christmas, and that's a lot of stress on me (and I know these people), so I can't imagine how freaked out the dog will be. We've got some contingency plans in place and all visitors have been notified not to be surprised by our new addition. Should be exciting!
More to come, I'm sure.
Our path lead west instead, and we're in our second house bought together. And he looks at me and says, "now can I have a dog?"
Truthfully, I am not what you would call an animal person.
We had one dog in my family and that was when I was in kindergarten. He was a huge German Shepard and I was terrified. Terrified! Ever since, I've really disliked dogs, especially when they do stuff like sniff your crotch, lick or bark -- oh, and drool. Gross.
But, okay, some of them are kinda cute. In Rhode Island, I babysat a dog for a week and I loved it. Her name was Zoomie and she had a horrible, abused past, so she was especially kind and sensitive if play got too rough for timid, little me.
So, fast forward to this spring. David hears about some dogs in his office that are used for research. I'm not sure for what, but once they age-out of the research, they are able to be adopted. We talked to a bunch of families who have adopted them and they had great things to say about the sweet, little dogs. They're beagles, around 4-years-old and 20ish lbs, and strictly trained not to bark or bite. They grow up in pens inside a lab, so they're pretty sheltered and amazed by things like stairs, grass and snow.
It all kind of breaks my heart, which is how he got me. I'm a big-ol' softie, after all.
I have a million concerns and unknowns, this being my first foray into dog-ownership. So, I've made it clear that this dog will be Dave's responsibility until we've all got some experience. (I'm reading up on the subject.) Dave had several dogs in his childhood, so he's our resident "expert."
I dunno. This all seems a little crazy. But, at the same time, it's these crazy events that make life interesting. The dog will shake up a lot of things in our little family, so, what the hell, right?
The timing is the most troubling part. He's coming the same week as all my family for Christmas, and that's a lot of stress on me (and I know these people), so I can't imagine how freaked out the dog will be. We've got some contingency plans in place and all visitors have been notified not to be surprised by our new addition. Should be exciting!
More to come, I'm sure.
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