When CC and I were on the road together years ago, back when he was just my boss, I used to ask him if we could get a sound department puppy. Preferably one that the props crew would take care of. Nobody went for it.
The kids started asking us when we were going to get a dog pretty much the minute they started living with us. We had lots of conversations about care and taking responsibility, but really it all boiled down to one thing: dog poop. We weren’t willing to talk seriously about a dog until all the kids unanimously agreed that they would handle the dog poop. It took longer than you might think.
I didn’t know this before, but puppies are contagious. All it takes is for one kid in the neighborhood to get a puppy and bam! everybody’s got one. There is apparently no vaccine.
Two years ago, a kid across the street got a puggle puppy and would bring it over to our house to play. It was summer, and CC was letting me sleep in until the puppy came over for its morning visit and then he would let it into our bedroom, where it would jump on my head and be all like “Oh my gooood! I’m a DOOOOG! Isn’t it GREAAAAT? I can’t BELIEEEEEEEVE it! YAAAAAAAY!”
It’s something, being around so much enthusiasm.
Before long I was online, looking for puppies. We did a little research and a lot of soul-searching and decided that more than anything we wanted a puppy that was happy. Enthusiastic, if you will. That led me to a puggle breeder about two hours away that had two puppies. They were the entire litter. I wrote a little about them here.
I packed four kids into the minivan one Sunday and trucked out on a road trip to look at some puppies.
We couldn’t decide. I’d thought that there would be some magical bond, some way that I would know The Right One For Us, but it wasn’t like that. Especially when there were only two to start with. It was more like eeny-meeny-miny-moe.
CC had to work and I sent him pictures, but he wouldn’t say which one he liked best. The kids were evenly split (#1 had opted out of the road trip). I wanted both of them, but that’s insane. Who gets two puppies? I picked the goofy looking one because he seemed to fit into our family the best:
He howled the entire way home, and he doesn’t look it, but he’s loud. That’s the Beagle in him. Then he pooped on my shirt. The kids thought that was hilarious.
As soon as we got him home, I realized the error I had made. Our puppy-to-kid ratio was way off. There was so not enough puppy to go around. Poor Jack was all tiny and blinking, cowering there with five kids hovering over him. CC admitted that he wouldn’t say which one he liked best because he wanted them both. I traded some texts with the breeder. They were willing to cut us a deal.
Three days later we went back for the pretty one:
When we brought her in the front door, Jack smelled her before he saw her and started dancing in circles around us. They were so happy to be back together. Then they immediately started fighting:
And it’s been like that ever since.
I will probably always refer to them as “the puppies” but today, Jack and Casey are two years old. They are ridiculous dogs. They are way more expensive than they should be. They are the one thing that we all agree on: we love them bunches.
Back when CC and I were just touring together, before any of this crazy stuff happened, I wasn’t ever planning on getting married to anyone or settling down on the east coast or buying a house or definitely not being a parent, but I did want a puppy.
I finally have a crew of five to take care of them.
JM Randolph, accidentalstepmom 
You made me miss my long ago small yellow lab. She was an “I love my daddy”dog. If I can choose only 2 people to have with me in the afterlife, the 2 people would be that dog and my granddaughter.
I love that. What I didn’t put in the post is that I had a dog from when I was four years old until I was twenty. She was The Dog. She still shows up in my dreams. It took what- seventeen years? Until I was finally ready for a dog again.
Do they still smell?
Of course. They don’t smell for exactly fifteen minutes after they get their weekly bath.
My latest rescue is a puppy and he gets on fine with the older dog. But he is so puppy-ish. He’s so glad and happy about everything. It’s hard to get mad at him even when he’s chewed something up. You gotta love them.
Rescue puppies are the best!
My dog is a total ham…we love him to bits too 🙂
We started the habit of poking them awake when we come home from work right after we got them. Now they’re our entertainment at night.
Glad you went back for the other one!
Me too!
On Superstar, you were all about getting a sound puppy. I think that was the one time I was right about something on that show.
You were right about plenty on that tour. You should get a puppy.
I loved reading about your pups. They are sooo cute! Even though I loved having a dog, and our family seems incomplete since we lost Mischief in November, http://lifewellblended.wordpress.com/tag/animals/), I don’t know if I am ready for another dog yet. I am definitely not ready for the poop. But, I do know what you mean about pups being contagious. My brother and his kids just got a cocker spaniel/terrier mix the size of your hand. He sent us pictures on-line. They are coming over on Sunday. With the dog. Where can I get a vaccince for the kids?
Mischief looked like a super sweet dog. I needed lots of time to be ready for these guys. I think your only hope of a vaccine is if the puppy poops ON your children on Sunday. Good luck!
You have an amazing life story. Glad you are able to share it with us all!
Sweet story. My Puppy also smelled like poop when I brought her home in my hand. First order of business was a bath in the sink. And weekly baths thereafter. Maybe its motherly love, but unless she got to rolling around inside of a seal carcass at the beach, she didn’t smell much to me. Or maybe it was because she slept with me and we both smelled the same…
Yeah, I don’t smell them either and I think it’s because I smell just like them.
I used to breed German Shepherds. One in particular of our dogs I loved so much. He was adorable. A true Shepherd in every way (and yes, I read all of von Stephanitz).
Where I am at the moment we can’t have a dog, but when we finally move, the one thing I want is a dog! Maybe like you, we will need two!
Happy Birthday to your expensive monsters!
Thank you for being a responsible dog owner and for taking care of your dogs AND their poop.
We have allergies in our family and just aren’t in to pets, so we don’t have dogs. But inevitably we have lots of dog poop in our yard. Other dog owners in the neighborhood aren’t always responsible and let their dogs roam. I get sick of dog poop in our yard when we don’t even have a dog….
Jim, that is what fences are for! My best friend in American and she couldn’t believe we ALL have fences here! Front fences, side fences and back fences. No-one gets in our yards but us! 😆
If you have any extra fence, I’ll totally take it.
That’s just not cool. Nobody needs more dog poop, especially people who don’t have dogs. We have to keep them on a leash always because they have no sense of self-preservation and also are not afraid of cars.