Lets Go Back To The Begining

[Beth.]

Oh my turn, my turn!! get ready for some photo overloads.... I LOVE THIS THREAD!!!!! (i've been trying to post all afternoon but my internet died!!!!)

I've wanted my own dog for as long as I can remember - last year my friends would take their dogs to the beach or to the park everyday, and I just couldn't wait to get my own!!! Once we knew for sure the uni was moving out to Gatton, I was on the hunt for my puppy!!! I had been introduced to the breed the Australian Shepherd, and fell in LOVE!!!! I emailed a few breeders, and really had my heart set on a blue merle bitch. Unfortunately I wasn't having any luck, as I was really hoping i'd get one over the 3 month holiday - when I got an email from a breeder saying that someone had pulled out a little mismarked blue merle girl!!!! She sent me some photos and I fell in love. Lottie is over 7 months old now, and she is my heart, and I couldn't imagine what my life would be without her in it!!!! She makes my day so much better, just little things she does.... like when she wakes me up in the morning with her head on my bed (and I was this tough girl whos dogs would NEVER sleep inside most nights she makes her way on my bed!!!), and I love how much her bum wiggles when she sees me!!! Lottie was meant to be and I'm so lucky to have her in my life!!!!!!!! She goes everywhere with me and is just such an awesome little dog :D :D

This is a photo from the breeder at 6 weeks and I knew from then she was MINE!!!!!......

I had her transported up from NSW and this was the first time I saw her - she was in her little cage SOUND asleep, and I was a little worried as it was a decent size trip for her, but she came straight to the cage and started wiggling her bum and licking me - LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!

The 3 photos below are of her first day with me.....

And my beautiful heart girl about 2 weeks ago.... I'm pretty much in Love, hahaha

[furballs]

We had our previous rescue newf PTS, because he had his third stroke and it was time...................I just thought i should let newf rescue know as we have always kept contact

They sent me this sad face and said she was unable to be placed, because she was unpredictable and people/dog aggressive

We were not emotionally ready for another dog, but knowing her plight we went to Sydney and brought her home........the first six month were a struggle, but she sent me on a new path of searching for answers. And me and her just clicked from day one. She has always trusted me and never reacted aggressively to me.

She has turned into my heart dog, a joy to own, a very special dog

The faces of Annabelle

That's beautiful, what a lucky dog to have found you

[percyk]

It was a Saturday, a special one. My 14th birthday.

Id wanted a dog, ached for dog. I was sick with the type of longing that only the truly possessed-obsessed can recognise. Suffering a madness born of despair and true hopelessness.

"Getover 75% in maths and we will talk about it' Dad had said. My constant but subtle appeals for a puppy had no effect. I might as well have been told to bounce over the moon. Unaided.

75% wasnt a possibility for my mathematically impaired brain. It was a cruel, impossible challenge that set a firm cap on my dreams. And that was it.

Dad was a stern but loving figure. Full of fun sometimes, even. Negotiations werent part of the family vocabulary. He was an animal lover but we lived in a flat. No room for a dog. Maybe even against the rules. I didnt care about the whyfores, the wherehows. The result was the same.

I was dogless and, in maths, stilluseless.

My brother was studying at his desk. I was lying on his narrow bed, contorting my body into a variety of shapes, consumed with a mix of grief and murderous thoughts. Grief at the loss of another opportunity for my Dad to present me with a puppy and evil thoughts of how he should be punished.

The garage door creaked itsmiserable announcement: my father had arrived from his Saturday shift at work. Early for my birthday celebrations. I assembled my face into a smile (pointless and dangerous to appear unappreciative on my birthday, I knew that much).

Dutifully, I walked to the front door, a panelled affair with opaque glass. I saw the silhouette of my father. An unwelcome sight. I opened the door, called out a greeting and turned away to walk back into my brother's room.

Dad called my name. What now, I thought. He wants a kiss. Better give him a kiss. Be nice. It's your birthday.

Dressed in his usual navy coveralls, my Dad stood at the door. Back to the light.

In the dim light of our loungeroom I could make out a shape. ( My heart is beating faster even now at the memory).

A tiny head.Brown, pointy snout. Soft, long ears.

A puppy.

Numbness. Disbelief.

I had,indeed,been bounced over the moon.Unaided.

Gently, Dad unclipped his coveralls and with one hand scooped the pup out from its niche.

With no hesitation, the puppy trotted straight to me.

We had met before.

In dreams.

I didnt know him to be a tan standard dachshund back then.

Because it didnt matter.

It still didnt matter.

I had a dog.

"He wasnt the best of the litter," Dad was saying. "But I grabbed him,anyway. Missed out on the black and tan one I wanted to get you." I was hearing it through a fog.

Dazed, I gawped at my puppy.

"We'll call him Percy, hey?'"Dad went on.

I didnt care. Call him Horatio. Porteous. Mustard Milkshake for all I cared.

I was happy, deeply happy. The type of serious 'happy' that is born of true longing, madness and despair.

Happy,just to call him

M I N E

(Thankyou dearest Daddy. Long departed. I hope that I have thanked you for that truly wondrous moment so long ago. My first encounter with deep fulfilment. Miss you both.See you some time. Over the moon.)

Edited April 28, 2010 by percyk

[percyk]

Thanks for starting this thread. I have enjoyed reading others' stories.

[B-Q]

My mum and my stepdad went out one Saturday morning to do some grocery shopping. When they got home my stepdad ran in and said "go see what your mum has!"

Outside in her arms was a little 8-10 week old cattle dog cross puppy, covered in fleas and ticks, someone had dumped him in the car park in the middle of town and he was screaming to be let into a shop.

I still remember my first thought being "Thats gonna be my dog"

He was the family dog for about 18 months before mum relised that he and I were obvisouly very bonded and she officially handed him over as all mine.

He changed my entire life, who would've guessed the little skinny Northern Territory camp dog puppy picked up in a Katherine car park would end up sleeping on someones bed everynight and being spoiled rotten.

Did I mention he's tolerant.

And probably my favourite head shot of him so far. Taken a couple of weeks ago. This boy is my heart, I need him so much and I love him more everyday.

Edited April 28, 2010 by busterlove

[SkySoaringMagpie]

This thread is so gorgeous, and now I feel guilty for not telling a proper story!

[Edslaine]

What a delightful thread - all those stories and gorgeous photos.

The first time I met Edward he was skinny, fur matted and frightened of his own shadow - after spending 11 months locked in an electrified paddock. He didn't know how to play or what to do with bones and he went mental every time he saw another dog. But thanks to trainers, obedience and my vet he is now my beautiful, beautiful boy. Actually lots of things I read on DOL helped too. He was six last week - well I think six - the vet and I had to estimate. I think about how far he's come and sometimes I don't believe it.

I don't know if I could do it again. My next dog will be a puppy from a reputable breeder but having said that I wouldn't swap my Edward.

[Dust Angel]

Happy,just to call him

M I N E

percyk this is so well written! Thank you for sharing

Im loving everyones stories its just beautiful to know that moment that you first set eyes on each other means so much to others as well!

[CaseyKay]

Percyk that was a beautiful story

My oldest BC girl Maddie and my teenage BC pup Gael were both chosen for me by their caring responsible breeders after I told them what I wanted in a puppy and what i wanted them for (tracking and agility). Middle girl, well she was a bit different. I wanted a second pup when Maddie was 18 months old, doing well in obedience and just starting in agilty. I was having a rough time, in the space of only a couple of months I had had a scary but non-injurious car crash hitting black ice on the highway, my Dad died after a long drawn out illness and my FIL died very suddenly and caused massive family problems. Maddie is and always was a nice easy dog but quite independant and aloof. I REALLY needed puppy cuddles at that time.

Husband found an ad in the paper and took me to see some BC pups "as a surprise" to cheer me up, well that is so NOT how I do things! But anyway, they had one pup left and the Dam was shy and the pup was 10 weeks old and VERY VERY shy and also very tiny for 10 weeks and seemed a bit odd. Unfortunately she was also fluffy and gorgeous and not only was my giant sook of a husband there, my Mum was too...I spend half an hour arguing with them about why it was the wrong puppy, from the wrong parents and the wrong BREEDER (later my suspicions that this was somewhat of a BYB puppy farm were confirmed). My wishes were overidden and Puppy KC rode home on my husbands lap. He left her with me while he went out with Maddie for afternoon milking and I have NO IDEA what happened really because I was busy telling the puppy she wasn't MY puppy and I didn't even WANT her but by the time Husband got home she was sleeping on my lap and I had fallen seriously, deeply in love with her. She has had health problems (is epileptic) and is still shy, but my love and faith in her has never wavered over 8 years. She is truly my heart dog and 100% what I needed at a really rough time.

[claireybell]

Some beautiful stories here.

It had been 3 years since we'd lost our family dog. I was living with my boyfriend and had been thinking about getting a puppy for a long time. He'd kept saying no so one day I came home with a brochure for a $70,000 4WD. He changed his mind and said I could have a puppy. I found a breeder in Geelong and we went to visit. He had two little girls left, one was a pudgy little thing and the other was a skiiny little brat who kept tugging at her sister's ears and wouldn't settle. The breeder said she never settled, was always on the go and causing caos. My boyfriend said "Umpgh she sounds like you!" Both the puppies were let out of their little puppy pen and the naughty one came bounding over to my feet. I knelt down and she jumped up at my hands so I picked her up for a cuddle. She snuggled into my neck and I was gone! She is my heart dog. She knows every one of my moods as I do her's. She follows me everywhere and if I'm about to come down with tonsilitis (sp) she will sniff at my throat and neck. She is a pure joy to be around. Always happy, bouncy and full of life. Her tail never stops wagging and I'm sure one day she will take off like a helicopter!! Her name is Jesie but she gets called Scruffy or Bongo and I tell her every day that she is the most beautiful cocker in the world. Mind you I think she already knows that.

Jodie was suppose to be a new water and food bowl for Jesie!!! I sent OH to the pet store to get new bowls and some toys. He rang me and said they had some beagle X cocker puppies and he thought it would be a good idea to get Jesie a playmate as she was left alone all day while we were at work. At this stage Jesie was only 9 months old and the thought of another puppy while exciting also seemed like alot of hard work! I said we'd think about. Two hours later he came home with a beagle X puppy. Jodie jumped out of OH's arms and started playing with Jesie who was sooooo excited. Little thing got tired very quickly though and came over to me for a snuggle. I was in love with my new water bowl!

I adore both of my girls and I love them both the same but for totally different reasons. Jesie is highly strung, mental, always on the go and just sooo happy. Jodie is sweet, affectionate and a real softie.

[indigirl]

Karma, Ripley, Nyx and Luna were all chosen for me by their breeders as show prospects and were 'mailed' to me as baby puppies. My first moments with all of them were me peering into an airline crate dying to get a look at the latest addition to my doggy family.

Capri was also mailed to me but he was 3yrs old when I got him so had seen pics and knew what he would look like.

Sultan I bought as a 2yr old from his breeder as a pet iggy. I had long admired the breed but wanted to know what they were like to live with before I jumped in with both feet and bought a show quality puppy. I picked Sultan up in person from his breeder in SA. She had a yard full of iggies plus a litter of pups so it was all a tad overwhelming. On the 4 hr drive home however I got to know Sully a little and found him to be a lovely little guy.

Chilli I adopted from the local RSPCA. I went to 'check out' the litter of kelpie/curly coated retriever crosses they had and Chilli was the smallest pup and was being bullied by her siblings. She was crawling around on her belly but was following me. I fell for her and ended up taking this funny looking puppy home with me.

Wally the sheltie I adopted from Albury Dog Rescue after his elderly owner died and he was dumped in the pound earlier this year. He was 12yrs old with a gimpy leg and deaf as a post so I wasnt sure what to expect. When I met him I was really surprised as he was a beautiful looking boy.

Ive got no puppy pics on this computer so cant add them until I get home.

[Nic oh lah]

My stories are probably pretty well known by now, but i'll share anyway! Prepare for a mammoth read if you're game.

I've wanted a German Sheperd since....... always, having grown up with them and loving them so much. Hubby and I saved for two years and waited for a house we could afford with a big enough yard for a GSD! After buying the house and spending thousands getting it fully fenced and dog freindly we'd just started looking at breeders websites etc.

On one of my "click around the shelter sites" afternoons looking on the off chance there was a purebred GSD destined to be ours I saw a 1 line advertisement "Free to Good Home, German Sheperd Female, 18 months, Desexed, call .......................) - so not really descriptive, but for some strange reason I just felt compelled to call and talk to these people and find out more.

After lots of deliberation I made the call and ended up on the phone with a woman who clearly was out of her depth with this dog - she explained that Page was a purebred dog with papers and everything (though she couldn't tell me who the breeder was) and that she was out of control digging, chewing and jumping on people, and hadn't been out of the yard, and wanted to attack any other dog she saw walking by, and was really a bit vicious. Hmm. For some reason I still asked if I could meet this terror dog, and jumped in the car after work to drive to check her out. I was met at the front gate by two snarling GSD's and waited for the woman's husband to come and let me in - all the while thinking "I could just get back in the car and go now", but i stuck it out. It took me a few minutes to realise that Page was frightened of me and so so skinny, and just trying to keep me away - I waited till she'd settled a bit, walked over slowly, and then let her get up and sniff me all over. I stretched out my hand timidly, and she walked up, looked up at me, and rested her chin in my hand. She wasn't snarling Page - she was Sophie, and she was my Sophie. I had nothing for a dog at home, and it was dark out and I didnt want to scare her so agreed with the releived couple that i'd love to take her and would pick her up Friday afternoon so she could have the whole weekend to settle with me at home.

When I showed up at the gate on Friday afternoon, there was a waggly tailed sook waiting to jump all over me and lick me the second i walked through the gate. I put her pink collar on (her first ever collar!!!!) - slipped a chain around her neck, snapped on a pink lead and within 5minutes she was walking on lead. I gave her old owners a hug, a bottle of wine, a bunch of flowers, and their other dog a big rawhide bone, and vowed to keep in touch, which i have. Sophie sat on my lap the whole way home licking me - lol. It was the next morning when I raised my hand to my sunglasses and the flinched that i realised she'd been hit. It broke my heart - she was just misunderstood. With patience and the help of a freind Sophie is now lever 2 in obediance class (YAY SOPHIE!!!) and very freindly with other dogs although often a bit too boisterous with her play, and she turns her nose up at the cats. Sophie has never looked back, she's put on a much needed 10kg and is now a happy healthy girl.

Chase was a whole other story - the good freind who helped me with Sophie's training and socialisation is a registered Border Collie breeder - from the text message "YAY confirmed she's pregnant!" to when they were 8wks old and she started looking for homes I was following the litter closely and playing with the puppies weekly and helping with their early socialisation (that vicious GSD I wrote about earlier was a test dummy, lol) i'd never considered getting a puppy, I was a GSD girl and that was that, though my husband said he wanted a BC next and commented that it was a coincidence that the first Wonelook litter came on his birthday. Anyway - I got a message out of the blue from my freind "are you sure you don't want a puppy? Chase would be a perfect herding, agility and obediance dog, and i'd love to use him for stud in the future - will you come see him?" which was so unexpected - hubby and i went down that night and as soon as she put Chase in hubby's arms, Chase had his Daddy. He came home that weekend for the long easter weekend and settled in immediately -he and Sophie love each other, but they both play rough, and she's 40kg so he spends most of his time inside unless supervised outside - when he's big enough to escape his area over the couch, he's big enough to go out with Sophie.

Our babies go everywhere with us, they're mummies girl and daddies boy, last night we had a music practice at our church and I was mixing sound in the tech desk with a border collie snoozing draped over my shoulders, and Paul was playing bass on stage with an impressed Sophie sitting on a church pew watching him from the front row! We're the crazy dog people now to all our freinds, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

[macka]

When we got Leia, my OH and I were temporarily living with my parents to save up for a deposit to buy our first home. She was originally to be my mum's dog as we didn't know if we'd be able to afford a place with a backyard or one where we'd be allowed to have a dog. Nevertheless since we were living there for a while, we had input into what sort of dog we were getting. I had a preference for a couple of different pure breeds, but mum and I couldn't agree on any of them so we "compromised" by getting a cross breed. We didn't know anything about the differences between registered breeders and BYB back then, and knew nothing of health tests. All we knew were that pet shops and puppy farms were bad, so we were looking for a puppy from a family home. So that's how we ended up picking up this little female pup from someone who's pet had had puppies.

When I saw her photo it was love at first sight.

First days home:

Despite possibly being the naughtiest puppy in the world, I bonded to her instantly, and as I took her to obedience, walked her each day, fed and bathed her and played with her, it became apparent that she had become my dog rather than my mum's. When we did buy our own house and moved out, there was never any question that she was coming with me. :D She is SO smart and such a sweet little thing, every night without fail she comes and sits on my lap while I watch TV or read a book. She still has a naughty streak :p and keeps us on our toes, ;) but we just love her to bits.

When Leia was about 18 months old and we had finally got her naughtiness under control, OH and I started to think about getting a second dog. By this time I had learned a lot more about dogs and breeders and health tests, so we knew this time we'd be buying a puppy from a registered breeder. We talked for months about which breeds would suit us and I had email conversations with at least 10 different breeders before we finally made a decision on a Labrador Retriever puppy. There was one breeder in particular that I liked the sound of and she had just mated one of her girls so we asked to be added to the list for a puppy from that litter.

We waited for what seemed like forever, receiving weekly updates of mum's belly, before finally puppies were born and it was confirmed that there was a black boy available to us if we wanted one. Of course we did. ;) So 8 long weeks later I brought home 6kg of pure black cuteness. :love:

It took me a little longer to bond to Archer as he was a bit unsettled at first; and it took Leia a couple of weeks to accept that he was here to stay. However, he soon wormed his way into our hearts, and now I can't remember what it was like without him. Leia has also come to love her annoying little brother and they are constantly playing together. Archer is possibly the biggest sook in the world and loves his cuddles. He has been the easiest puppy, I keep waiting for him to go through a naughty patch but don't think he will as he is just so eager to please, he hates getting in trouble and when he does, just gives you the most pathetic look that you can't help but forgive him instantly. I love my handsome boy. :D

[Mollie10]

I have always adored dogs, but being allergic, I was never able to have one. When I was 14, we moved interstate and I was homesick and heartbroken. As compensation, my parents said I could get a puppy. We'd heard that poodles were concerned low allergenic, and I'd fallen in love with a little toy poodle (he was brown, and so sweet).

I ended up with a little white fluff ball who was apparently a poodle x bichon x westie x maltese from what I now know to be a backyard breeder. She was so beautiful though. I called her Lucy, and she was my light. She died a few years after I'd moved out of home and I was devastated. Didn't want another dog, EVER!

My OH and I decided after having two rental properties sold out from under us that we were going to buy a place and that we wanted a dog. I spent heaps of time on the internet researching. He'd had GSDs his whole life and wanted a bigger dog, but I was so allergic to them it wasn't a possibility, plus my heart belongs to scruffy dogs. I found this gorgeous looking breed called the wheaten terrier. It was considered low allergenic, it was medium size, it had a personality description I liked the sound of... I arranged to meet a breeder whilst interstate and came away from that meeting completely in love and with some names and email addresses.

I emailed our breeder and she replied saying that she was waiting for a litter to be born at that very moment. Serendipity.

As she was in NZ, I didn't get to meet my puppy but she sent lots of photos. I knew it was going to be either Miss Pink or Miss Purple. Finally I knew that Miss Pink was going to be our Anouk

This is the litter at 7 days

Miss Pink at about 3 weeks

Miss Pink at six weeks

Anouk finally! At about 8 weeks

Because she was flying from New Zealand, we had to wait until she was about 12 weeks to fly her over (for her own wellbeing). She arrived on 15 December at 11 and a half weeks. I went down to the airport and opened the crate to this bigger than I'd expected puppy with a little black face. She was sooo soft to touch and she hid at the back of her crate and didn't want to come out.

On the way home I sat in the back with her and she fell asleep on my knee. She's the naughtiest dog in the whole world, but I love her more than words can say.

I'll have to do Ziggy's story in a separate posting!