turkeymama
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 20, 2009
- Messages
- 1,196
Wow! DH finally relented and said we could have another animal. We have a small dog (inside/outside) and a cat (strictly inside). I have been wanting a retriever or a retriever mix for quite some time. I had two in the past, both Golden Retrievers. I loved them both dearly, although they were both goofy as can be. I don't mean they were goofy in an unintelligent way. In general, they were just very fun-loving, silly and very active.
So the dog we got is half Springer Spaniel and half Golden Retriever. Her hair is long and wavy like a golden, but she is black in color. She is so pretty. We brought her home last night. She is about 4 1/2 months old and she is much bigger than I anticipated. Since she is an older puppy, she came to us already named. Her name is Bella. I think she will grow bigger than my previous two retrievers. Her legs are very long and sturdy with rather large feet. Either I'm not remembering how big my retrievers were in the past, or this is the springer spaniel in her. Her ears are definitely not retriever ears. They are very long.
Our house is not puppy-proofed! It is certainly not puppy-proofed for a large puppy. This much I discovered very quickly. Bella picks up anything she can get her mouth on. DS is horrible about just dropping things when he is through with them. And the cat thinks DS's Legos are things to bat around, so there are Legos EVERYWHERE. I think we've gotten them all up now. This morning, Bella brought me small package of Smarties candy. No idea where that even came from.
I have been following her around constantly. She thinks everything is a chew toy, including my laptop and cell phone. I understand that is very normal for a puppy. Thank God she slept through the night in her kennel. I really thought she would wake me up having to go outside.
DD has a large mirror on the wall in our dining room. Bella walked into the house last night and spotted her reflection immediately. Apparently, her previous humans never showed her a mirror. She still isn't sure about that "other dog". Every time she walks past that mirror, she stops and stares at it for a minute with her ears erect. Well of course, that "other dog" is staring back at her.
So this angers Bella and she growls and barks. It is quite funny and I managed to get a few minutes of it on video. Bless her little heart. She is a very clunky girl and gets ahead of herself when she moves. She keeps hitting her head on things. It doesn't seem to bother her in the least.
DS has a medical appointment today so Bella will wait till later in the week to go to the vet for her checkup. Her previous human family is sending her vet records today. She is up to date on her shots, so I'm not concerned she has any immediate problems. Oh, but she snores. Goodness, does she snore!
I was really worried when I first heard it. I was convinced it was some sort of death rattle. When I checked on her, she was sound asleep with her body contorted in a strange position. Once she repositioned herself, the snoring stopped.
Anyway, we love her already and are so happy to have her as part of our family. I will very quickly introduce her to the fenced backyard later today so I can puppy proof the house for her. Having had puppies in the past, I know what to expect and how to prepare. It's been so long since I had a large puppy, I guess I just forgot how much they get into. She is very much like a large, rambunctious toddler right now. But she seems to love me in return already. This morning, she sat on the ottoman in front of me and just stared into my face while I rubbed her big, floppy ears.
So the dog we got is half Springer Spaniel and half Golden Retriever. Her hair is long and wavy like a golden, but she is black in color. She is so pretty. We brought her home last night. She is about 4 1/2 months old and she is much bigger than I anticipated. Since she is an older puppy, she came to us already named. Her name is Bella. I think she will grow bigger than my previous two retrievers. Her legs are very long and sturdy with rather large feet. Either I'm not remembering how big my retrievers were in the past, or this is the springer spaniel in her. Her ears are definitely not retriever ears. They are very long.
Our house is not puppy-proofed! It is certainly not puppy-proofed for a large puppy. This much I discovered very quickly. Bella picks up anything she can get her mouth on. DS is horrible about just dropping things when he is through with them. And the cat thinks DS's Legos are things to bat around, so there are Legos EVERYWHERE. I think we've gotten them all up now. This morning, Bella brought me small package of Smarties candy. No idea where that even came from.
I have been following her around constantly. She thinks everything is a chew toy, including my laptop and cell phone. I understand that is very normal for a puppy. Thank God she slept through the night in her kennel. I really thought she would wake me up having to go outside.DD has a large mirror on the wall in our dining room. Bella walked into the house last night and spotted her reflection immediately. Apparently, her previous humans never showed her a mirror. She still isn't sure about that "other dog". Every time she walks past that mirror, she stops and stares at it for a minute with her ears erect. Well of course, that "other dog" is staring back at her.
So this angers Bella and she growls and barks. It is quite funny and I managed to get a few minutes of it on video. Bless her little heart. She is a very clunky girl and gets ahead of herself when she moves. She keeps hitting her head on things. It doesn't seem to bother her in the least. DS has a medical appointment today so Bella will wait till later in the week to go to the vet for her checkup. Her previous human family is sending her vet records today. She is up to date on her shots, so I'm not concerned she has any immediate problems. Oh, but she snores. Goodness, does she snore!
I was really worried when I first heard it. I was convinced it was some sort of death rattle. When I checked on her, she was sound asleep with her body contorted in a strange position. Once she repositioned herself, the snoring stopped. Anyway, we love her already and are so happy to have her as part of our family. I will very quickly introduce her to the fenced backyard later today so I can puppy proof the house for her. Having had puppies in the past, I know what to expect and how to prepare. It's been so long since I had a large puppy, I guess I just forgot how much they get into. She is very much like a large, rambunctious toddler right now. But she seems to love me in return already. This morning, she sat on the ottoman in front of me and just stared into my face while I rubbed her big, floppy ears.
Needless to say, we keep the screen door open and dont use the mesh door at all anymore....we only close the glass door portion. I think our goofy dog thinks running thru the mesh is fun. 
Took a while for us to puppy proof again.
The two dogs played a little this morning. Bella seems to know "her place" in relation to Pops (the other dog). Just to give you a frame of reference, he is tiny and weighs about 5 pounds. Every time he tried to sniff her, she hid behind me. So here is this huge, clunky puppy that can easily reach my face when she stands on her hind legs and she stands behind me for protection from this tiny little purse puppy. The cat hates Bella. She is certain of this and needs no further information on which to base her opinion. Bella just wants to play with both of them, really. I think she will do fine with the other dog over time. The cat? I'll be happy if we can just have a truce. 
