My husband and I had gotten our two dogs before we had kids, so our sons had never experienced raising a puppy. Sadly, our 15 year old dogs began to go downhill and Hallie was lost to heart failure and Paige was drastically slowing down due to diabetes. We began thinking about the heartache our family would experience once Paige was gone, so we began the hunt for the perfect puppy. We started out hunting for specific breeds and one day my husband surprised the kids and I with a trip to the dog rescue tent that was open every Saturday on the other side of town. Of course, everyone was SO excited, but my husband told us that we were there to look and would only bring home a dog if we found the right one. We really wanted a puppy and one that would be good with kids.
As we started looking through the dogs, each of us found one that we thought needed to come home with us, as we were each being drawn in by the people from the different rescue agencies. Of course, we were only finding grown dogs and we really wanted to find a puppy. Then, we found her. There were two puppies, a sister and a brother that were so cute and fuzzy. The sister was feisty, while the brother was taking a nap. My husband had her in his arms before I knew what was happening and was already asking questions about her. She had the coloring and markings of a German Shepherd and was so soft!
The guy that had brought the puppies in said that his work place had been leaving food out for the mother dog and then had found her puppies. A few of the puppies had been kept by workers, but the others needed a home. We were all SO excited that we would be bringing her home. She was so much fun in the truck, sitting in the backseat with the boys. The kids couldn’t stop laughing at how energetic she was and how she wanted to chew on their fingers when she wasn’t licking them. She was 7 weeks old and had already been named Jazz, but our family was determined to find her a new name. It took a few days, but we all finally decided on Dakota.
Since we didn’t have any puppy toys at the house, we had to make a stop at the pet store for a collar, chew toys and a few balls while I sat in the truck with her while my husband and the kids shopped. The kids couldn’t wait to get her home and introduce her to Paige, our 15 year old blind, diabetic lab. My husband and I figured that Paige only had a few weeks left with us, but amazingly, her new friend Dakota brought her new life and she lived for almost another before passing away.
Thank you Dakota, for all the happiness that you have brought into our life!
This post written in partnership with Dog Fence DIY and their team of dog containment system specialists. The DIY team seeks to engage dog owners and promote positive and safe dog safety practices.