Puppy Love

Most of you have probably heard of the natural bond between dogs and children.  Well, with two puppies and four children, I have had a chance to witness it on several occasions.  The first time I saw it was when we first went to pick out the puppies.  As soon as we got there, we sat down and Troy picked up a beautiful grey female that is now Sierra.  He held that pup in his lap the entire time we were there, gently petting her and smiling at her as if he had known her his entire life.  She immediately took to him and gently nipped at his fingers, licked his hands and his ears, and then fell right to sleep in his lap.  The bond between these two was locked from the moment they met, and it is still there today.

The second moment was with Jason.  In typical “Mr. Practical” fashion, Jason was nervous around the puppies because they seemed to have sharp claws that could possibly hurt him, so he only wanted to pet them when someone else was holding them.  He didn’t hold either puppy the whole time we were there to pick them up, the whole way to the pet store, or the whole time we were in the store.  It was not until I was trying to load two puppies, four kids, and a ton of dog stuff into the mini van that I forced him to hold Echo.  I made him get into his seat, put on his seat belt (what a good mom I am!)  and then handed him the puppy.  He protested strongly at first, but, since I am mom, I won and he held the pup.  By the time I got back to the cart to load the stuff into the van, he was talking nonstop about how soft the puppy was how cute and…you get the point.  He wanted to hold him all the way home and once we got there.  Jason and Echo are now best buddies.

I think Derek still scares the bejeezus out of the poor puppies, but he is so in love with them he can hardly contain himself.  If he could just slow down, they might not cringe so much when he comes around.  That being said, they still chase him around the yard and kitchen, nipping at his heels.

Probably the most touching moment of puppy love came yesterday morning with Ashley.  You see, Ashley is their worst nightmare.  She pulls their fur and tail, slaps them in the back when she tries to “pet” them, lays down on them and smashes them so they can’t breathe, and pinches and squeezes their face.  She is getting better, but she is still pretty rough.  For all intents and purposes, these pups should hate this little kiddo, but apparently they don’t.  Yesterday morning, as I left to pick my son up from kindergarten, I left Ash home with her daddy.  As I closed the door, I could hear her start to get upset.  When I arrived home, my husband informed me that as soon as Ashley started to cry, both Sierra and Echo ran up to her, licked her, pawed at her, and climbed into her lap.  When she buried her head into their fur, they endured it without a single yipe or cry.  They put up with her until she quit crying and she felt better.

It is amazing how unconditional puppy love between kiddos and pups can be, isn’t it?

Kelly