Well, the decision has been made! We think Tommy is the right addition to our little family. The only obstacle we have to overcome now is the "future fur-sibling meet-n-greet". Basically I have to bring our current pup down to meet Tommy tomorrow and make sure they aren't going to try to kill one another.
The current apple of my eye is a 67 pound liver & roan German Shorthaired Pointer male by the name of Dozer. He is the most mellow and laid back dog you could ever hope to meet. The only things that ever gets him excited are of the feathered variety. I'm really not worried about him. He gets along great with everyone at the dog park. If any other dog ever gets to be too much for him, he just finds me and lays down at my feet. Then he gives the other dog a look like "Nah nah! My mommy will protect me!"
No, the only thing I'm worried about is Tommy's reaction. Kyle said they haven't tested him around other dogs, so they are unsure as to how he will behave. Pitties are, unfortunately, notorious for being "dog aggressive". What that basically means is they are super lovers when they are around people, but for one reason or another they DO NOT LIKE other dogs! (here's a Wikipedia link that explains it a bit more in detail: Dog Aggression).
Math and I have already fallen so in love with him- cross your fingers that it all goes well and I can bring him home afterward tomorrow!
Monday, July 15, 2013
Saturday, July 13, 2013
The ONE!
Well, I think we found the one! I'm not going to get my Rottie girl, but neither one of us fell in love with her. Don't get me wrong- Zoe was an absolute sweetheart! It just didn't feel like she belonged with us, with our family.
I was also wrong about the American Bulldog. He was a definite NO-GO! We weren't given the whole background story on him before we drove that whole way. Apparently he came from a domestic violence situation and Math looked a lot like the guy he was removed from. Chance (that was his name) loved on me, but he literally lunged at Math on three different occasions to try and attack him! Now, don't get me wrong, Math and I are all about giving every dog a chance and working with any issues they might have so as to allow them to have the fullest life possible and get lots of lovin' from a good family, but he was not ok to be available for adoption! The longer we talked with the people who were fostering him, the more it became apparent that he was a very unpredictable dog with strong aggression tendencies towards unknown men. Letting a dog like that be adopted without working on his training would be nothing but a disservice to the breed when he would become another one of the "dangerous dog" statistics! I shudder to think of what could have happened if we had overlooked it and brought him home to work with it. We have little kids and friends that visit us on a fairly regular basis... But I digress...
At the humane society (shout out: Prairie's Edge Humane Society!) we met with a sweet little Am Staff girl named Tianna. She had a gorgeous fawn & blue brindle coat (I'm a sucker for a sweet brindle!) and was an absolute lover! When I saw her online and then we went to meet her I thought Math might pick her as she was the smallest out of all the dogs we had seen so far (he wants a smaller dog to ride in the semi with him), a female (he was convinced he wanted a girl), and had already been in training/foster situations so she was house broken, crate trained, socialize with people and other pets, and knew her basic commands. She was all love, but very "in your face" kind of loving. I could totally have seen her tackling the kids to the ground to give them kisses! lol! She and Math just didn't "click", though. Sad face :(
The next dog we met with at Prairie's Edge was Tommy. A 62 pound bundle of marshmallow love. He's all white with just a few tiny brown "dalmation" spots on his ears and nose. When we first walked up to his kennel he seemed almost aggressive. Very loud barking and a small throaty growl. My initial reaction was "No way, Jose! There's no point in even taking him for a walk, as I'm not going to have an aggressive animal in my house!" Then I thought for a second. Something about the tone of the bark and growl didn't really seem like the normal DANGER/BEWARE tone that dogs usually have. Kyle, the kennel manager was quick to step up and explain that this was just the way Tommy greeted strange people. Said he was gentle as a lamb once you got him out of his kennel, but it was his strange and very loud way of saying "HEY! LOOK AT ME!". Was he every right! Once we got Tommy outside for a walk both of us instantly fell in love with the goofy marshmallow boy. Super friendly, loves giving kisses, and that big ol' Pittie smile! He knows "sit" like a pro and put up with Math touching him all over and gently tugging on his ears and tail. He's a bit unsure of himself, though. He definitely got very nervous when Math tried to roll him over to scratch his tummy.
He's a stray, so they don't know much of his back story. But something tells me that's not going to matter. He's a lover and we've fallen head over heels for him. Of course, we're going to take a couple days to think it over and make sure it's the right decision, but who am I kidding? We're counting down the days until he's home!
I was also wrong about the American Bulldog. He was a definite NO-GO! We weren't given the whole background story on him before we drove that whole way. Apparently he came from a domestic violence situation and Math looked a lot like the guy he was removed from. Chance (that was his name) loved on me, but he literally lunged at Math on three different occasions to try and attack him! Now, don't get me wrong, Math and I are all about giving every dog a chance and working with any issues they might have so as to allow them to have the fullest life possible and get lots of lovin' from a good family, but he was not ok to be available for adoption! The longer we talked with the people who were fostering him, the more it became apparent that he was a very unpredictable dog with strong aggression tendencies towards unknown men. Letting a dog like that be adopted without working on his training would be nothing but a disservice to the breed when he would become another one of the "dangerous dog" statistics! I shudder to think of what could have happened if we had overlooked it and brought him home to work with it. We have little kids and friends that visit us on a fairly regular basis... But I digress...
At the humane society (shout out: Prairie's Edge Humane Society!) we met with a sweet little Am Staff girl named Tianna. She had a gorgeous fawn & blue brindle coat (I'm a sucker for a sweet brindle!) and was an absolute lover! When I saw her online and then we went to meet her I thought Math might pick her as she was the smallest out of all the dogs we had seen so far (he wants a smaller dog to ride in the semi with him), a female (he was convinced he wanted a girl), and had already been in training/foster situations so she was house broken, crate trained, socialize with people and other pets, and knew her basic commands. She was all love, but very "in your face" kind of loving. I could totally have seen her tackling the kids to the ground to give them kisses! lol! She and Math just didn't "click", though. Sad face :(
The next dog we met with at Prairie's Edge was Tommy. A 62 pound bundle of marshmallow love. He's all white with just a few tiny brown "dalmation" spots on his ears and nose. When we first walked up to his kennel he seemed almost aggressive. Very loud barking and a small throaty growl. My initial reaction was "No way, Jose! There's no point in even taking him for a walk, as I'm not going to have an aggressive animal in my house!" Then I thought for a second. Something about the tone of the bark and growl didn't really seem like the normal DANGER/BEWARE tone that dogs usually have. Kyle, the kennel manager was quick to step up and explain that this was just the way Tommy greeted strange people. Said he was gentle as a lamb once you got him out of his kennel, but it was his strange and very loud way of saying "HEY! LOOK AT ME!". Was he every right! Once we got Tommy outside for a walk both of us instantly fell in love with the goofy marshmallow boy. Super friendly, loves giving kisses, and that big ol' Pittie smile! He knows "sit" like a pro and put up with Math touching him all over and gently tugging on his ears and tail. He's a bit unsure of himself, though. He definitely got very nervous when Math tried to roll him over to scratch his tummy.
He's a stray, so they don't know much of his back story. But something tells me that's not going to matter. He's a lover and we've fallen head over heels for him. Of course, we're going to take a couple days to think it over and make sure it's the right decision, but who am I kidding? We're counting down the days until he's home!
Time to Meet Some Puppies!
Today is the day! I can just feel it! Math and I are going to drive all the way to Faribault and then Albert Lea to take a look at four more dogs. (Not like we haven't already driven from here to kingdom come looking for the right new addition to our little family... lol!).
There is an older (6-8 year old) female Rottie at an adoption day, two Am Staff/Pit Bulls at a humane society, and then in Albert Lea we've got an American Bulldog male at a foster home. We've already looked at so many dogs! I'm really hoping Math falls in love with the Rottie- I miss my Lilly Bear something fierce! But I know it will probably be the American Bulldog. He's wanted one for a while now, and the pup does look like a cutie patootie online. No matter what, it will just be nice to have a two dog household again!
There is an older (6-8 year old) female Rottie at an adoption day, two Am Staff/Pit Bulls at a humane society, and then in Albert Lea we've got an American Bulldog male at a foster home. We've already looked at so many dogs! I'm really hoping Math falls in love with the Rottie- I miss my Lilly Bear something fierce! But I know it will probably be the American Bulldog. He's wanted one for a while now, and the pup does look like a cutie patootie online. No matter what, it will just be nice to have a two dog household again!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)