Dolphins and Dogs in Training

In August Grace, Tillman and Sully did a session of swimming lessons at Debbie's Dolphins swim school. It's a small back-yard pool operation...the kind of thing I've been looking for since the Shinsels retired and we could no longer take from them. I had heard lots of good things about how effective she is, as well as a warning about what a tough-mother she can be. It was all true. She definitely runs a tight ship --- with both kids and parents. But at the end of the session my kids had made really great progress and loved to swim more than ever. We'll be going back next year.

This week Mike's wildest dreams came true. His new Wirehaired Pointing Griffon puppy arrived from Idaho. We named him River (finally breaking away from the planetary themed pet names). I could have done without a dog for a while, but Mike has a soft spot for dogs. He convinced me with his argument that the little boys needed a dog to grow up with like the older kids had. I made a list of required traits: a dog that doesn't shed, smaller than a Lab (and not as loud),  gentle with kids and new people (knowing that the entire neighborhood would consider him their dog), and Mike wanted a hunting dog. He did his research, settled on this breed, and found a breeder in Idaho with a new litter.

We realized that while we have owned dogs in our lives, neither of us has experience in raising a dog from such a young age (8 weeks). We've been reading a lot, and watching YouTube.

How goes the training? River cried a lot the first night. But Mike was Johnny-on-the-Spot, springing out of bed whenever he heard River crying in the night, rushing him outside to relieve himself. I joked that Mike was better about getting up at night with the puppy than he had been at getting up with our babies. He admitted it -- but said, in his defense, there was not much he could do to meet our babies' needs, which was a good point.

 River sleeps a lot. Like all babies.

Since our backyard is not fenced, and he's too young for the shock collar, we can't just turn him loose outside. So, for now we are working on house-training. He spends almost all his inside time in a pen, and then we take him outside whenever he shows signs of having to use the bathroom. He's learning. And as with my potty training of Sully and Abner, I am grateful that this house is mostly tile and laminate flooring. It makes things less stressful.

And someday he'll look something like this... pretty cool.

So, while I didn't initiate the search for a new dog, and the puppy training can be frustrating, I am excited for this new addition. It's different having a puppy around. They are so fun and filled with wonder and curiousity, it makes everything fresh. I miss Jupiter, but it's really nice to start again. I smile when I think about what Jupiter would think of this new little guy. I wish they could have met.