We had been talking about getting a puppy for the family & had gone to the local pet store to check out what they had. They only had chihuahua puppies and we both decided that they would be too small & breakable for us (not to mention the stereotype of small dog = aggressive behavior). The lady that worked there told us that they are the type of dog that picks one owner & can be aggressive toward others (I'm not sure how true that is since I have seen chihuahua's as family dogs). She said that something like a boxer or german shepherd would be better for kids & would let us know if any came in.
Fast forward about a month & we had pretty much decided that it wouldn't be happening anytime soon. For one you can't just make a puppy appear and two if it did there was a good chance it would be well over $800, and I am not willing to spend that much for a dog. We aren't planning to breed it so no need for pure breed and papers.
Then, Marlon's cousin & his family had puppies born on February 26th this year. Judie had posted a picture of them a few days after they were born & I instantly fell in love.
Their mother is a mini Australian Shepherd (not mini as in toy, just smaller that the average A.S. size) & the father looked to be a Collie/Shepherd mix (he was a stray). I talked it over with Marlon and started messaging back and forth with Judie. We decided to get a female and travel over there (about 2 hours) to pick her up on April 9th when she would be 6 weeks. We had a bit of a hard time picking a puppy (there were 4 females to choose from) and they were all so cute! We had decided on one and kept chatting and playing with the others when Marlon said he also liked this other one (enter Bella), she was a lot calmer and sweeter acting than the others, he picked her up and she just laid quietly in his arms. She was the One!
We have had her now for almost 10 weeks. We have been training her to sit, shake, lay down, stay, speak, & stay / get down. She "potties" on command mostly too. We still have to work on come & walking well on a leash as well as biting (which we have gotten down to a minimum). We have been noticing the last few weeks that she has realized who her family is & what is hers (as in her house, yard, etc.). She barks at strangers that get too close (but melts if they are nice and want to pet her) & will sit quietly in front of the kids when they are on the couch as if she is protecting them.
I have gotten her on schedule of shots and meds, we buy them at the local feed store & Marlon does the shots while I hold her. She is coming up on her 16week shots, spay, & licensing. We attended a benefit BBQ & silent auction for a dear friend of ours with breast cancer & I won a full service spay from our vet for 1/2 the price! (I never knew how much it is...no wonder so many dogs are never spayed or neutered).
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