And Sparky the Dog Makes Seven

Three weeks ago, we brought home a puppy. He is the cutest little fuzzy ball of golden fur with a mellow personality. We collected him at my sister’s house after her dog had puppies on their twelve-acre property north of Kansas City and we drove him home to Mehlville.

The last time I had a puppy, I was a sophomore in high school. Our black lab and malamute mix, Shadow, lived long enough to move in with my husband and I after we married and was even still around to play with our first two kids. She lived an unusually long life of almost 16 years, and we loved her sweet temperament.

I resisted getting another dog for four years after Shadow died. Besides all the aggravations of having a young puppy, I just couldn’t believe another dog could be so good with my kids, or so dear to me as Shadow.

And I had plenty of excuses: my husband traveled for work, we had young kids and we also tended to pick up and travel on a regular basis.

But when my husband got a new job this spring that requires very little travel, my excuses started to fall apart. I was forced to think about whether I had room in my heart for the trouble a puppy would bring into our world. I began to come around and we started talking about getting a dog.

What finally pushed me over the edge was the level of chaos already in my house. Really, would I be bounding back to a time of house training and extra messes after my kids left that phase? Nope, when you have a chance to throw in a little more mess to an already huge mess, I say, go for it.

Then, in perfect time, my sister’s dog had puppies. When we arrived at their house, I was able to surprise my kids with the news that we were taking one of the little golden lab mix puppies home.

Within days after we got Sparky, he stopped missing his puppy brothers and knew we were his family. When I walked him after he had been with us a short time, he was already tugging at the leash with recognition when he saw our house. He jumps around to see the kids and sits under my chair whenever I go outside to read or work at my laptop.

Puppies are a lot of trouble. Even when you have kids old enough to take on some jobs. But I didn’t want to be the mom who wouldn’t let their kids have a puppy, and I know that someday before long my kids will be spending less time with me and I might be really glad to have a fuzzy face to pet.

Even now, I find him hard to resist. Not that I have a choice. Just like babies, he needs a lot of love and attention and there’s no giving him back. He’s already settled in and become a part of our family. I’m surprised at how happy I am with our decision to have him join us. 

How did it go when you brought a pet home? Do you have any training tips? Tell us in the comments!