“Normally, I have a very sweet disposition as a dog; in fact, more than once, James suggested I make the change permanent. The tail, I could live with, but the fleas… they’re murder.” – Sirius Black, The Order Of the Phoenix Movie
We have a baby.
Baby dog, that is.
The magnitude of this reality hasn’t fully sunk in yet. We’re actually dog owners at last!
I’ve wanted a puppy of my own ever since we said goodbye to Kopek. While Brian wanted a dog too, eventually, he insisted we couldn’t possibly get a dog until we bought a house – a goal at least a year or two down the road.
But a week ago today, a “chance” encounter changed everything.
It was raining. It never rains here, but on Saturday, the day we were supposed to take the youth group to hand out flyers for a new church and do yard work, it was raining.
I was tired. It’d been a long, busy week at work, all I really wanted to do was snuggle under the covers and read while listening to the rain drumming on the window. And I had a good excuse for not going, I thought, because I’d pinched a nerve while working out that made it painful to walk, even stand, sometimes. The day before had been agonizing, but miraculously (and unfortunately for my alibi) the pain had vanished completely.
Without a good excuse, I begrudgingly decided to go, still hoping that our service day would get rained out.
Although the forecast called for an 80-90% chance of rain all day, not a drop fell all morning.
I sleepily walked up and down driveways hanging flyers with a group of ladies from church, when a SUV pulled up to the curb and rolled down the passenger window.
“Are you missing a dog? Or would you like one for free?” the driver called. We gathered around the car.
He was left under a lawn chair in her yard with a bowl of cat food and a Harkins’ Theaters cup of water. We could see where his collar once was, but his previous owner had taken it with them when they left him.
And what are we going to call him? After much discussion, Sirius Black, so named after the character in Harry Potter, stuck.
First, Sirius Black can transform into a big shaggy black dog. Sirius is small, yes, but because he’s a terrier mix of some kind, he is shaggy. and with his little beard, he kind of reminded us of the Sirius Black in the Harry Potter movies. Plus, Sirius Black was disowned by his family, our Sirius was disowned by his original family. And, he’s pretty quiet for a puppy, and has a “serious” disposition.
Sometimes, anyway.
He has ninja toilet paper snatching skills. Seriously.
We’ve taken him to the vet, got his first round of puppy shots, and discovered that he’s about 12 weeks old. We’re crate training, housebreaking, and teaching to sit and not bite.
And so begins this new adventure of dog parenting! Wish us luck!
Have you ever had a puppy? What books/classes/websites do you recommend for us?
