We Adopted a Puppy…and I Almost Didn’t Make It to Day 4.
I have been dreaming of the day I would get to have my very own dog for a while.
Long before meeting Isaac, when I thought I would never meet someone who would truly appreciate all that is “me” (hehe), I would envision myself laying in a king size bed with a Great Dane and Miniature Yorkie.
In my perfect imagined world we were all best friends. They would comfort me and cuddle all day long, and come camping and sleep in a van with me, of course.
I always imagined it to be so easy and perfect…
Well, that specific dog dream never quite came true, but I DID find a human who truly does appreciate and love all that is me (truly a miracle!).
In March 2020 we moved in together, right at the beginning of the Pandemic. It didn’t take long to get comfortable and feel at home together, and like many during 2020, the dog fever began to creep up inside me again in no time.
We held off for a while, or rather, Isaac told me no… but then January 2022 came around and changed everything…
We got engaged, got Covid, and adopted a puppy, all in one month.
We applied to adopt her from AARCS. She was staying with her foster family in Calgary, and we were given the opportunity to meet her on the day my Quarantine ended. It was a tad overwhelming to say the least.
The last Sunday of January we drove from Edmonton to Calgary to meet her and were immediately obsessed and in love. We said yes to adopting her and that was it.
Suddenly, we had this little puppy, desperate for attention, vulnerable as hell, and completely in love with us.
And there was Isaac and I, completely giddy and equally in love, but with little idea of what we had just gotten ourselves into or what our parenting strategies looked like!
For the next two days, we steadily deteriorated as our new puppy, who we named Evie, was given access to roam the entire house.
For two days we gave her our constant attention, playing with her, chasing her, and trying to distract her. For two days we had no breaks, and neither did Evie.
By the evening of day three, we were completely exhausted. Something had to give!
In a sudden blur, I saw Isaac concoct a sustainable way to block off an area of the kitchen for Evie. It seemed so obvious and simple and yet, we hadn’t thought of it!
We sat down on the couch for the first time since we’d arrived home with her. In that moment the tears that had been welling up and begging to come out subsided completely.
Everything suddenly felt ok and in control. I remember thinking, THIS is what STRUCTURE feels like?!
We didn’t know how to set boundaries (both physical and nonphysical), and the result was an overstimulated puppy and burnt out parents.
Once we gave Evie her own safe space, we realized she needed it to be able to calm herself down too! She just didn’t have the tools or awareness to understand that yet.
We had been so apprehensive about using her crate during the day, and we weren’t used to every little thing in our house being a possible danger.
We wanted to shower her with love and cuddle her and she wanted to run around and test out her new teeth on our ankles!
After successfully implementing our first actual boundary, Isaac and I were finally able to come together and breathe for a minute…then we went straight to YouTube to learn all about dog training.
From that day forward, I knew this doggo would continue to teach us many important lessons about life, love and adventure. Not even 5 days in and she was already reminding me of the importance for rest and structure, and of taking time for one’s self.
So yeah, I almost didn’t make it to Day 4…but with a little bit of boundaries, I did! Now it’s been almost 3 months with this special bean in our home and I can’t imagine it having happened any other way.
Always, thank you for reading!
If you have any stories or lessons that your puppy (or newborn) has taught you, I’d love to hear about them in the comments below. In the moment things can seem so intense and demanding, but after a bit of time, some sleep and a snack, they can truly make for the best stories!
