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When our fur baby Sam died over the summer, it was quite the blow to us.  We had our rescue for over 13 years when Bobby and I were just dating.  She was our constant.  She was always there through this roller coaster of life.  She kept me company when her daddy went to war.  She was the first to greet our babies when we decided to have them.  Sam was our girl, and saying goodbye crushed us.  Her passing also crushed our other dog, her companion, Shelby.  It was not fun watching our other dog grieve, however, timing wasn’t ideal to get another dog, I was about to have baby #4!IMG_0002

We were always a two dog family.  We couldn’t even deal with the pain of picking up Sam’s bowl or her bed for that matter.  Our Sam was equivalent to losing a family member.  My husband’s friend from North Carolina is one of the biggest dog lovers out there.  My Bobby said I bet he has a puppy for us.  Sure enough, he did and the silver lab pups were expected to be ready to go home in the beginning of the new year, so we had time to adjust to the baby and get into our new home.

The kids were so excited about the puppy.  We talked about training and how they would have responsibilities with her.  They were on board for all of it.  They got to watch the puppies grow with their dog family over Facebook and they loved it.  I never met such a  loving family that treats their dogs like family members.   It was really nice to see.

At one point, understandably so, Bobby and I went back and forth with whether we should get her or not.  We weren’t sure we could handle it with the baby and the move.  Mabel was born on Veteran’s day and we felt it was a sign because my husband is a Veteran.  We went for it!

My sweet niece flew across the country with Mabel from North Carolina to San Diego.  Traveling went fairly well for her and we got to spend five days with our sweet niece.FullSizeRenderJI6A5685

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When she stepped off the plane we were taken back by how pretty she was. She has the bluest eyes and is just so so sweet. All of us were smitten beyond words.

Reality Set In

Just when my sweet Brody decides to sleep longer stretches, Miss Mabel decides to yelp every hour.  Of course this was expected, she’s confused and misses her animal family and just flew on a 747.  Heres where it gets really good.  My old lady weimaraner Shelby who has been grieving Sam who was supposed to love Mabel, is actually afraid of her.  I thought Mabel would be great for Shelby, instead she is scared out of her mind.  That wasn’t supposed to happen.  However, I heard it takes time with older dogs and eventually they will be the best of friends. Phewwwwww, that’s a relief.  And lucky for me, I have her previous family on speed dial walking me through every step of the way.  I love animal lovers like this family, they have been so resourceful.

That really didn’t just happen

Due to Shelby being afraid and sad she’s been sneaking into our bed at night.  I am nursing baby Brody so at some point he comes into our bed too.  Now with Miss Mabel trying to get adjusted to her new crate, the yelping is echoing through our house, which is waking up my three-year old.  Who in turn also ends up in my bed.  So picture this:  Bobby, Roman, Baby Brody, Shelby and I all in the same bed and all of a sudden I feel something warm on my back.  Oh yes, it’s what you think it is.  My Roman peed the bed.  MY BED!  He peed my bed.  How in the world could this gorgeous puppy cause such havoc?  I seriously have to laugh at this.  Five of us in the bed trying to get a few hours of shut-eye only to get peed on by Roman.  And yes he had a night-time pull up on.

My husband and I can’t even make this stuff up.  It’s crazy over here, but not a chance in the world would I trade any of it (well maybe Roman peeing in his own bed).  Miss Mabel will get with the program eventually and will start to love her puppy crate soon enough.  Shelby will eventually warm up and Roman will have to stay in his bunk bed with Jackson.  Shelby will also warm up to her new forever friend and she definitely needs to get back to her dog bed.

As for Miss Mabel, we are back to puppy basics trying to get her adjusted with a big emphasis on rewarding good and acceptable behavior.  As for me, I think I will sleep in the car tonight just to get a few hours of sleep.  Any puppy advice is welcome on my blog.  Comment below and let me know great techniques that worked.  How can I ever be mad at this blue-eyed beauty?  She’s so pretty my husband calls her, “Mabel-ine”

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8 thoughts on “Bringing Home Sweet Mabel”

  1. She is so beautiful!!!! Soon enough all this madness will be a distant memory. I love reading all your excitement of life.
    We used a bell for our dogs to go outside. We would rub their nose on the bell that hung on the door every time we let them out. Before we knew it they would ring the bell to let us know they needed to go outside. It really makes life easy.

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  2. These pics just make me smile so much! I’m sorry about the pee part:/ But I swear you are living girl!!! While the rest of us are
    ‘Dialing it in’ you are really making moves/taking chances for your self/familiy towards happiness and daily fulfillment. How the heck do you get the energy for this?! I dont know but I want some– just a teaspoon of ‘Sunny D’ that’s you man!!!

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  3. The only remedy to crate training a new puppy is time and consistency. You are on the right track!! My 1 year old Lab did not like our new pup either. Again, with time,she grew to love her little brother,and now they are the best of friends. Mabel will eventually stop barking in her crate, and make sure you only take her out when she is quiet. You want to reward her for being quiet in her crate. Some pups are more persistent than others, but it does get better!! Congrats on your new fur baby….she is a nice addition to your beautiful family ???

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