"Every dog deserves a boy" said Mr. Peabody, and he was right. Malcolm has been after us for a dog for a couple of years, and we felt he was ready for it, and so here he is.
'Bangsi' (which means 'teddy bear' in icelandic) is a mini aussie or Minature Australian Shepherd dog. We became enamored of them when I saw someone playing with one at the playing field adjacent to Malcolm's school: they're compact, smart and awesome ball/frisbee dogs. Our friend Jesse has one, so Malcolm had a 'playdate' with their dog, Dash, which sealed the deal: this is a good dog for him. And it is a good time for him to learn the responsibility of dog ownership and care.
We had dogs growing up, years ago as kids, but dog/puppy ownership is new for us, too. We've had cats for years as they're much easier to care for and make better pets for busy people. In fact, we're going to great pains not to freak out our cat of 12 years, Charlie, by introducing a dog into the house. From what I've read, for cats it is primarily about territory, and for dogs it is about being part of the pack. So for Charlie's sake we've been careful to not limit or change any where he can go (we keep the puppy in a pen at all times, they can be very destructive!) and we've lavished attention on him to reassure him. So far he's cautious but not too freaked out by the puppy. Also we deliberately chose the most mellow and relaxed puppy of the litter (this may be because of his size, he's the largest of the "minis") as we hope he'll be the best tempermentally-suited to live with a cat. So far it looks good: he's not aggressive, barely barks at all and when an orange neighbor cat walked past him in the yard, he just looked bemused. Some watchdog he'll be.
For Bangsi, the initial adjustment is to get him used to sleeping in his crate at night and to stay within sight whenever possible so that he becomes comfortable as part of his 'new pack'. The first two nights were awful as he wailed in his crate, and we foolishly let him wander around our room. Big mistake: every thirty minutes or so he'd try to climb into bed with us, and wake us up. Finally last night we put the crate next to our bed, and (on a friend's advice) I put one of my t-shirts in the crate with him to reassure him that we are nearby. It worked, and he slept through, which is a huge relief. It's like having a newborn in the house again!
Puppy obedience training starts early July at Seattle Dogworks, so if we can survie the next few weeks with this very busy, bear cub of a puppy, we'll be on our way to a happy dog's life and hopefully ours as well.
