Dog for a day

Well, Skippy is no longer Toby's little playmate. Mr. Joe came and picked him up this afternoon to keep for another lady until Monday. She has a girl dog, so they're hoping the dominance thing won't be an issue. I HATE that things turned out like this. I was so excited!

But, you know...for the few hours that Toby was outside with him last night (before I had to go separate them) the house was almost too quiet. I know I get aggravated with him, but he's pretty good company... for the most part. I'd probably wind up missing him if he was outside all the time. Yeah, he's hairy and smelly and slobbery and he jumps on my face when I'm trying to sleep, but he makes my life interesting.

A flaw in the plan

The plan was working wonderfully. At first.

Skippy arrived around 4:30 yesterday afternoon, and I immediately thought, "Oh! Now there's a happy dog!"

His tongue was lazily hanging from his mouth, a big doggie smile on his face...cute as he could be. I put him in the backyard with Toby and let them do their sniffing and circling and getting to know each other. It genuinely seemed to be going well.

This is when I sighed and thought, "I'm so smart! Why did anyone doubt this? Look how great this is!"

Toby could NOT have been more excited. Poor thing. You'd think he had never played with another dog before. He was bouncing around like he was on crack, panting like a wild-child. You could see the happiness in his cute little puppy eyes.

Skippy...well, it wasn't so much happiness as annoyance.

I failed to consider there would be a male dominance problem. Skippy claimed every chew toy in the yard, the food bowl, the water bowl and anything else Toby seemed slightly interested in. I'm not talking about merely taking it away from Toby. No, little "Skippy" would ATTACK. Not so skippy, afterall. Bared teeth, deep, threatening growl. Sweet little Toby would just wag his tail until Skip jumped on him. Then (being so brave) he would tuck is ears and run. Yes, he is ferocious. No doubt.

I think the deal-breaker is the fact that Skippy won't let Toby get within three feet of me. Seriously. He JUST met me. You don't get between me and my baby. He's been here longer. Don't run him off!

I know that all of that is neccesary to establish the alfa dog, but I just wasn't expecting it.

I'm not too proud to say I might have been a little hasty in my decision. (Yes, Mom. I admit it. Maybe I should have thought it over a teensy bit longer.)

There are about five people at work that are really interested in him, so I know I won't be stuck trying to make it work. I feel like I should give them time to get to know each other, but at the same time, I don't want them to fight all weekend.

Uhhhhg.

A new addition

Okay. I have some news that I am BUSTING AT THE SEAMS to tell you. Are you ready?

There will soon be a new addition to my family.

This is the part where Mom said, "No. No there won't be. You're not pregnant are you?!"

No, Mom...no babies.

Just THIS:

Let me introduce you to Skip, a three-year-old cocker spaniel who needed a new home. (How could I refuse?)

The shock collar around his neck will be GONE. He's been staying in a yard without a fence, but since my yard is fenced in, there will be no need for all of that!

Here's the plan:

Skip (whose real name is Skippy, but whom I will undoubtedly NOT call Skippy) has always been an outside dog. That's all he knows. He is supposedly VERY mild mannered and calm and I am hoping beyond hope he will be a good influence on my little hellion.

I've been trying to ween Toby from the house. I have a huge backyard for him to play in, but he gets lonely out there and resorts to barking incessantly until I let him back in. My plan is to put Skip out there with him for company and finally rid my house of tiny, white dog hairs. (THEY'RE EVERYWHERE.)

And I never thought I'd be one to mind it. I've always had an inside dog, but lately I've been getting frustrated.

I LOVE Toby, but I am so tired of my house smelling like dog, even after his baths. I'm tired of my sheets, couches and floors being covered in dog hair. I'm tired of stepping on chew toys when I get up to pee in the middle of the night and finding raw hides hidden under my pillow when I'm trying to fall asleep....

So, we'll see how this works out!

He will be delivered to my house this afternoon, so there will be more pictures to post soon.