Phenix.
K-man's sister B has a yellow lab who was mysteriously impregnated, and threw a huge litter...11 puppies. I'd been looking for a pup for some time, and after a few craigslist scams, and not enough money to purchase a designer dog from a reputable breeder, realized that this was my shot.
We went out last weekend (thanks again B!!) to spend some time with the nieces and nephews and pick up my new baby.
We (Kman and I) knew almost immediately that the only puppy to follow Muggsy around was the one for us. Muggsy was having a hard time with all the puppies, but this little girl never gave up on him, no matter how many times he snarled or growled at her. She pranced along through the grass, right behind him, nipping at his chops.
After picking her out, I carted that girl around everywhere. We went to a soccer game, and fishing, and just around town. I was in love.
Since coming home, I've learned a lot about parenthood. Now, I know all you moms out there do wonderful things with the human children you bring into this world, and I mean no harm in comparing the two situations. But, let me paint you a picture.
Imagine having all the wonderful things about your baby, the cuddles, and the playfulness, the curiosity, all the innocence in the world, paired up with needle teeth, razor claws too tiny to clip, the ability to walk (like a toddler) and the inability to wear a diaper. In addition to the crying at night, and the hardship of not being able to understand your child, you have this little hellion that thinks it's a grand time to chomp down on your nose before running off to piddle on the carpet (the carpet you cleaned ten minutes ago.) One minute you its playtime, and you are having a fun afternoon, and the next it's 2 in the morning and you can't get your baby to stop crying without letting them gnaw on your arm.
That's being a dog mom.
I can tell you I've never had so much respect for the parents who are up all night with babies to feed, and soothe, and change. I've never run on so little sleep.
I wake up every morning around 4:30 to take her out, and let her "do her business." Then, we go back to bed, while she chews on a stick or a teething toy. Around 6:30 she's ready to be up again, this time for breakfast. She eats her breakfast, and goes out again to do her business. Then, it's play time. She runs and jumps and yips, and chews. I sit on the floor half awake and throw whatever toy is closest, so she tries to eat that instead of my shirt. Around 8 am, she's ready for another nap, and curls up like a little angel right on my head. About 9 I have to get up and get ready for work, or start working depending on my schedule. 10-11 she's up again and ready for playtime. If I have to go in, this is about the time I leave, so I give her a little snack, take her out, and then put her in puppy prison (the kitchen.)
When I get back from work, in the early afternoon, she's ready to go out again and have play time, and a snack. Then, around 5 it's dinner time. She eats again, and then plays until about 6 when she crashes. She usually sleeps for another 2-3 hours, before waking up at 9 to go out, and play...AGAIN. Then, she sleeps or cuddles until 12, when she thinks it's time to play again. This is the hard part. I usually give her a treat meant for chewing and that keeps her quiet, until it's gone. 2 a.s it's out to do her business again, and then she sleeps until 4:30 when we get up and do it all over again.
This is my life right now, and I can't even tell you how much fun it is. You would think I'd resent this little nutball, but taking care of her, even in the middle of the night, only makes me love her more. This morning, she whined at the back door so she could go outside to do her business. I was so proud.
This week she is 7.5 weeks old, and less than 10 pounds. We think she is a lab collie mix, with maybe a little corgi...(her father is unknown, but a collie corgi mix was seen near the house.) She loves her stuffed hippo, and crushed water bottles. She HATES bath time (we are working on that) but loves to follow Muggsy and play tug of war with him (sort of, it's an unfair fight right now....) I am so excited and look forward to watching her grow up.
H.
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