How Much Is That Doggy In the Window?

It has been almost six months since my dog died and the kids are starting to pester me for a dog, a West Highland Terrier to be precise. Honestly, I am missing having a dog around as well, though I miss Kramer in particular.

Why a Westie? Because my friends Mary Jane and Rick have an adorable Westie named Sophie and we stayed with them for six days on our recent visit to the UK. One of Sophie's cutest characteristics is that she charges the TV and barks at most animals, but especially dogs on the screen. The kids think that is hysterical. They also think it is so cool that they can pick up Sophie due to her size and disposition. Kramer was way too big and too cranky for that. My daughter, Thing 1, particularly enjoyed having someone else to talk down to and boss around.

So what do I think? I think having a smaller dog has its advantages in terms of the dogs portability, which in Kramer's last years was definitely a problem. But I am used to a big dog. I thought I wanted a big dog because I want a walking companion on long walks and hikes, but as Mary Jane points out, Sophie goes on 61/2 mile walks with us often.

I guess the other advantage of a smaller dog is that they will live longer, in general, than big dogs. Having just gone through the heartbreak of losing Kramer, I can see the advantages in that.

I do also like the fact that a big dog is more threatening to strangers visiting the house. But, I suppose that a smaller dog can inflict a good dose of damage if necessary. Also, sometimes it is enough to have a barking dog of any size to deter a burglar or similar miscreant.

One thing I am sure of though, it is that our next dog will be a rescue dog. Kramer came from the Humane Society and we feel strongly that there are too many dogs without a loving home to justify getting a pure bred puppy (to say nothing of the cost).

I have set a rough date of after my sister's chemotherapy treatments end in early September to start the dog search, but I suppose it is best to start registering with some of these pet rescues now as from what my friend tells me, it is a ridiculously rigorous process. He told me he needed to provide references from his last vet and groomer! I guess those who want to be first time dog owners need not apply!

Something tells me that I will be posting some blogs about the whole process in the near future. I guess things have changed since 141/2 years ago when we went to the Humane Society on our lunch hour and took this strange dog home to our house, only to head back out to work (and later came home to discover he had peed on the guest room bed!).