Getting Geared Up for Puppy

The first weekend in March, we head back to Huntsville to pick up our puppy, and we can hardly wait.  A thick sense of expectation envelops the whole household!  We've already got his bed, crate, and numerous puppy toys, all awaiting their new owner.

The puppies were born in December, and the breeder, Leslie Gene Reed of KeelMtn Kennels, almost immediately set up a "puppycam."  So we've been able to watch the pups grow and change the whole time.  Needless to say, the puppycam is up on our computer from the time we come downstairs in the morning until Leslie and her husband, Bob, turn it off at night.  Here's her website in case you'd like to ooh and aah at photos of the pups; there's a link to the puppycam under the "Our Puppies" link.  Below is a shot I saved from the puppycam a few minutes ago when they were eating their supper.  Our pup is the dark one on the right.  We've named him Jasper, after the faithful spaniel in Daphne du Maurier's fantastic novel, Rebecca.

In the midst of all the excitement is a realization, at least for Himself and for me, of how our lives are going to change.  We've tried to explain to the girls a bit, but I think it's really something you just have to experience, on a deep and personal level.  If you leave your Polly Pocket on the floor, for example, she's going to be decapitated.

Leslie posted something on her website that speaks to this point particularly well.  She said I could share it, so here it is:

Q.  We're choosing a breed.  What kind of puppy will be calm, clean, and quiet?

A.  Ceramic.  Puppies are awful.  Their teeth, when not embedded in your person, are dismantling your property.  Meanwhile, the other end dribbles unspeakable fluids in unforgivable locations.  Nature equips puppies with overwhelming cuteness to keep us from killing them.

Isn't that fabulous?  And it doesn't even mention puppy breath, which I adore.