Monday, October 5, 2015

Me on a Monday & Secondhand Dog





























So bare with me a smidge here. This post will be happy, then sad, and then happy again. And by sad, I mean I have already been sad enough for all of us and thought the whole thing through every single which way to Sunday...so maybe you can try not to be sad too. I don't mean to do it, but honestly have been keeping most of it in for better part of a month plus so let's rip the band aide off and get to it...

So, the last month has been rough. Rough from the stand point we started a new big project and have a pile of boards yet to go. I was out there today on the back side of the garage pulling nails and digging out the old metal so THE MAN could put up new boards. I also pulled out the old gross insulation and tried to not think too much about bugs, mouse turds, or how much it smelled. However, the sun was shining and I had a nice glass of ice tea. And progress! Things are looking pretty.

But that isn't the worst of it. I am starting to think of the whole thing partly as therapy. See four or five Mondays ago, our dog Patti started puking. By the next morning she was at the vets getting an IV to get her hydrated & some meds for nausea. The following morning when she still had not eaten, back down to the Vets she went. I let them take her away for another IV and to get her feeling better.

By that night they called us and told us that she was not going to make it. In a span of three days, we lost a beautiful young dog to liver failure & still have more questions than answers. The very fact I can write this means I have come a very long way. She left a huge paw print on our hearts and things haven't been quite right since.

But here is the happy part.



Her passing left us room in our heart and house for another pound puppy. Duncan P. Donut (his kennel name) wasn't our first choice when we visited the SPCA. He actually wasn't even a choice as his profile said he wasn't good with cats. We were there to see another dog. As the dog we were there to see was taken out of the kennel to visit with us, Duncan threw a shit fit complete with pawing the cage.

The lady helping us said Duncan had lived with cats, but they had recently tested him and he reacted to chipmunks so they felt it best to list him that way. We took him out second. He had a really awesome wiggle waggle to his butt and celebrated our presence by licking us quite a lot.

Turns out he was in jail for eating a floor. Having had a dog eat a couch, wall, orbital sander, office chair, too many socks and shoes to count, and open a plastic & metal kennel like a can opener, we weren't scared. Shortly there after, we welcomed Duncan to our house.

He is looking ashamed up there in the photo as he flunked sandbox. I took him down the road to a local doggy daycare that takes your pup when you are away and they play in a play yard. He was "too high energy" and will have to do some obedience training. THE MAN was less than impressed. We always get dogs that have a personality, he snorted.



As much as we thought Duncan was very similar to Patti with our first impressions, we were dead wrong. He reminds us much more of a boxer we had once and we think he's part boxer/lab with those big paws. He is also a lover. After his first vet visit, he had to say good bye to everyone in the office. Took me a half an hour to get out him out of there!

He already knows sit, stay, lay down, is potty trained, knows to leave the cat be, and loves tennis balls. He has also healed us a bit. I think our Patti sent us a 75 pound dog of pure gold. She also picked out a dog to keep the chipmunks in line. They were starting to get quite fresh. Wish us luck with our second hand dog, Dunk as they call him 'round here in these parts.


7 comments:

  1. Very happy for you and your new dog

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  2. Awwww, sweet! Since I was already sad about Patti, I am just happy to hear about new doggie. Can't wait to meet "Dunk" and have him take a shot at some chipmonks at the cottage, too. Just for the fun of it; they're too fast for him, I think.

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  3. Sorry. I am a little sad. Even watery eyes. Cos I KNOW how precious our doggies are to us. And I couldn't hold that in for a month like you....but good on you for moving on and taking in a rescue dog. He looks GORGEOUS. Love his colouring. Fantastic name, & he seems a 'card' as we say. Bit of a wag. Personality plus. I hope he fits right in - sounds like he has already!!!!

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  4. Oh no I am still very raw after losing my doggie in the first weekend in August.. I feel your pain... Losing a fur baby is so hard.. So very sad with you.... And then we open our hearts to a new fur baby... I do hope your new doggie is a real blessing to your family.. They do settle in and make paw prints all over your heart... He is a lucky doggie to have such a wonderful new family..! You found each other!!

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  5. OMG, that face!! The expression is like he knows he belongs there and he's protecting the fort from invaders of the little fury kind. I'm really sorry you're having to go through all these emotions. Patti had the best home a puppy could ask for with you all though. She was right where she needed to be to go through what she did. I wish you and your family even more wonderful memories with this new fury baby.

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  6. First of all... ((hugs))... I know that heartbreak. Nothing prepares you for it whether it's sudden or you know it's coming. So sorry. Secondly, omg... Duncan P. Donut?? His name is as cute as he is. I love boxers. Although I'll probably never have one because both of our dogs are second hand dogs that seemed to find us and probably that's how it will go. Our dog, Jack... he's a red golden retriever and when he came to us at 9 months he was already huge. And high energy doesn't explain it. He spent the first months of his life after he was purchased either tied behind a barn or in a crate. (Crates are great... but his was more like a jail). No human interaction except to be yelled at by a person that should never have gotten a dog. We worked our butts off and watched loads of the dog whisperer and well, he'll always be a goofy nut but he has come a long long way and is just a big ball of love. Anyway, sorry, that's me... so congratulations on giving your lives to another furry baby that needs you and so happy for you and for him that he grabbed your attention. ((Hugs)) again...

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  7. SO sorry about your loss. Just got around to read this blog, and Duncan/Dunk looks like he will keep you smiling.(or maybe frowning on certain days!!!) Glad you found him.

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