The kids have been begging for a dog ever since we moved into our house, but considering our busy schedules and our freakish need for organization and tidiness in our house, we’ve resisted. After much debate, we decided to appease them with a small critter for Christmas – maybe a hamster or guinea pig instead. So while the girls were at the Nutcracker with their Grandma (thanks for all the great holiday shows you’re taking them to GM!) we ventured off to Petco to explore their small pet selection. The guinea pigs were pretty cute, and from what I had read and heard, fairly easy to care for, super social (once they get used to you) and prone to making cute squeaky noises and hopping up and down when they’re happy.
Kinda cute, right? We checked out their food, hay and cages and were fairly sold on them as our newest family additions, until…
We noticed the tell-tale cages lined up under a canopy on the store’s patio. That's right...dog adoptions. We should just go look for fun we agreed, and with that innocent decision, our fate was sealed.
Within minutes we were making the acquaintance of Hershey. She’s a six month old black lab/retriever/shepherd mix with giant puppy paws and a super sweet disposition. She had us at woof.
See what I mean? In the days that followed our meeting, we discussed the pros and cons of dog ownership with each other and the rescue staff endlessly, but in the end we realized that a) this was a great dog that needed a good home b) we have plenty of love and space to make her happy and healthy and c) the right dog would bring so much more joy into our lives than even the most amazing guinea pig could (sorry, piggies and pig lovers, I’m sure they’re great, but just not for us after all.)
Hershey (new names are being considered now, send me your suggestions, please!) arrived last night for a trial weekend visit and we're smitten. Wish us luck!
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