Getting a Puppy

The decision to get a dog took us a while. We both wanted one but we didn't know if we were ready to make the commitment. After Jacob proposed in May, we decided to take the leap and get a puppy. I work from home so I would be the main care taker, especially during the critical first months. I was lonely with Jacob working 3-4 twelve hour night shifts a week and wanted a companion for the long night hours.

We searched for many weeks and got turned down by a private shelter who demanded we own a home and have a fully fenced yard. We thought that was a little ridiculous so we scratched them permanently off our list. On a Thursday morning, I showed Jacob a picture of a cute female pup at a shelter in Longview. He was put off at first by the description of a german shepherd mix but promised to make the hour long trek to go check out the pup.

We arrived in Longview (an interesting place for sure) to find that 8 of the litter of 12 were already adopted and a couple of guys were getting ready to fill out paperwork on another. We hurried into the back to look at the pups and immediately gravitated towards the only active one. She was spunky and responded to our calls. We looked at the other three and found what appeared to be the runt. She was a little listless and just slept curled up with her brother rather than investigating us. In the process of checking out the other three pups, Jacob managed to hit me in the head with the kennel door a couple times.

As we filled out the initial paperwork, we were told that our first pick was actually promised to the guys ahead of us. Jacob and I looked at each other and immediately knew which one we would take. The worker took him in the back to pick out our pup and when he came back, I could tell he was in love. The little runt was licking his face and head and climbing him like a jungle gym.



She was tiny! Only 9 lbs and a little bony but with a pot belly. The shelter workers were really great and even gave us a little leash and some treats to start out with (along with all the other important paperwork). We would definitely adopt from them in the future.

On the way home, Jacob let me bond with her. She slept for most of it but we let her look out the window too. I made the mistake of giving her a treat which she threw up (along with whatever food she had eaten at the shelter) as soon as we hit Portland. Not to worry though, we stopped and easily cleaned it up. It certainly would not be the last time she would throw up in my car.