Reprise...

Hard to believe that we've had Princess the Wonder Dog for three years, but it's true! Here's a blast from the past, the post I wrote shortly after she joined the family...

Well, we took the plunge and became dog-owners.

A wonderful local shelter had several pups and we took this one home with us. As near as our vet can tell, she's a Chow-Chow/Rottweiler mix. Our new little fur-child has, of course, added a new dynamic to our happy home.

While my husband grew up with dogs, I never had one, let alone a puppy. So, at 8 weeks old, there was a lot to consider.

Like housebreaking.

It doesn't matter what you call it, teaching the dog to "do her business" outside is a massive undertaking. Having been a high school teacher in a previous lifetime, I (mistakenly) believed that if I could deal with teenagers on a daily basis, then I certainly had the skills to housebreak a puppy.

Well, needless to say, she's the one housebreaking us. Thank goodness for steam cleaners. We've finally come to an arrangement in which about 85% of the time, she goes to the door to let us know that she wants to go outside, 10% of the time, we physically take her outside, and 5 percent of the time, she relieves herself inside, either intentionally or not.

And then there are my human children.

We were most concerned with how Sweet Baby Son would react. We were completely unprepared with Sweet Son #1's reaction, as HE was the one who wanted the dog.

Quite frankly, he's terrified.

Puppies nip when they play, and SS fears for his very life. You'd think she was a full grown pit bull or doberman. We did talk about it and even offered to return the pup to the shelter, but of course, he wouldn't hear of it. He wants a dog, just not one that nips.

SBS, on the other hand, has an agreement with the dog. She's no dummy. She knows who drops food when he eats. So she gets to eat and he gets to beat. He's a bit overzealous when it comes to "petting" the dog. Plus, if she really wants to get away, she runs. Really fast. Like, terror in the eyes fast. He calls her "gog" and gives her hugs and she nips him lightly. Like I said, an agreement.

We are a bit concerned though. In the church nursery one Sunday, he patted one of the other boys on the head and said "goggy". Maybe we need to get his eyes checked.