and no...it's not what you think (I WISH!!!)
As they say, keep living while you're waiting...and that's what we're doing. As most of you know, we have a 4 yr. old lab mix, Chopper. Chopper is still very much "puppy" and has lots of energy (aka HYPER). We have been working with him and have debated on whether or not we should keep him. Now, before everyone starts bombarding this post with notes about "how dare you give away your dog, etc..." this is not the forum for it. The concern was whether or not the hyper-ness of the dog would cause issues with the kiddos when they come home. However, we did not want to let Choppper go. Everyone kept telling us that having a 2nd dog would help with calming Chopper down by giving him a playmate.
We have been looking for an older dog ~ I did NOT want to go through puppy-hood again. Been there...done that. Michael has always wanted a boxer. So on Sunday, I went to Craig's List to see what might be out there. 30 minutes later, we were driving across town to look at a dog that had been rescued and was at a local shelter. An hour later, Gracie was brought home!
Gracie is a brindle boxer mix ~ mixed with what...we're not sure. She is a year and half, completely housetrained/crate trained, healthy and up to date on everything. She has been in a foster home for 6 months (the owner of the shelter) and they were very sad to give Gracie up, but they can't keep every dog that comes their way.
Gracie is by far the sweetest and calmest dog I've ever met. She is a lover and always following me and sitting on my feet. She loves Chopper. Chopper is terrified of Gracie. It's kinda funny to watch the 2 of them. He has definitely calmed down already, but I think it's more fear than anything. Hopefully he'll get more used to her and be happy that we brought someone new on to his turf. I think it's a good testing for what's to come!
Here are a few pics. The last one is a common sight- the standoff between Gracie & Chopper. Gracie waiting for Chopper to play....Chopper waiting for Gracie to move so that he can run somewhere and hide.
1 Had Something To Say:
precious! just precious! our full blooded lab (now 6) took a few years to calm down also. he's hardly the same hyperactive dog we had 2 or 3 years ago. most people that knew him then and know him now are really surprised by how laid back and calm he is.
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