Dogs are the best, aren’t they? You forget how lonely your house feels without them. We lost both Lloyd and Gunner within 6 months of each other and the stillness that set upon our house was unsettling considering we have 2 very active kids and a crazy life.
Our hearts were shattered after losing the pups – Feeling that loss with your kids is a game changer. To see them grieve and spontaneously be overcome with emotions because they miss the dogs so so so much is its own pain to go through.
We gave ourselves the space to cry, cuddle and heal together. Lloyd and Gunner each left a legacy which included all the insane stories that kept my blog posts just interesting enough;).
I mean, life for the last 6 months has been a bit on the calmer side yet remarkably boring. We haven’t had a single incident involving one of them ingesting tea towels, bricks of butter, a full salmon, tampons, socks, Xylitol or getting into the garbage. We haven’t had to deal with stress diarrhea, picking up turds the same size as a newborn baby or all the hair that comes with 2 giants;).
The last 3 years of our family life has consisted of travelling between the US and Canada. With 2 dogs that were basically horses, it made driving the only option. We have done SO many 40-hour road trips, which we happen to love, but to travel back and forth for short periods of time became difficult.
When we started chatting about the possibility of getting another dog, Nick suggested that we get a small dog – specifically under 20lbs – so that we could travel on a plane with them.
A small dog? Like, what do you even do with one of those? Haha – don’t get me wrong, I LOVE all dogs but to me, the bigger the better. If you were walking with a giant dog, I’m coming at you and looking for some serious snuggles.
We knew we weren’t in a rush to get a pup because we were on the road for the month of August. The Plan – well, naturally we were going to jump in the ‘ol motorhome and drive to Minnesota for a few weeks then we were going to catch a plane and fly down to Houston for the rest of the month. Fly back to Minnesota and then hit the road and make it back home.
It was a great trip but like all trips, it can be a little exhausting and I was feeling a bit on the tired side during the 20-hour haul back home to Canada. Road tripping is cool but it’s honestly a little cooler when you’re not driving in the absolute middle of nowhere for like, 15 of those hours;)
We crossed back into Canada and Nick suggested I start looking to see if I could find us a pup. I had been low key looking at our options for the last few months. I really wanted to go the rescue route, but it happens to be incredibly hard to find a small dog and the other challenge was that we also needed to absolutely be sure that it wouldn’t be more than 20 lbs.
A few months earlier I met a super-duper cute pup that looked like Chewbacca and it was genuinely sweet natured and did I mention it was CUTE!!! My mission then and there was to learn as much as I could about a Poo-Ton, yes you read that right!!
A Poo-Ton is a Poodle and Coton de Tuler Mix (I’d never heard of it either)!!! I had decided right then and there that if I was going to get a small breed dog, it was going to be that one!! It was a good thought, but do you think I could find anything local? Nah, not a Poo-Ton in sight!! Life took over and I didn’t have time to obsess anymore.
Okay, so we crossed the border – you know, into Saskatchewan. Woomp woomp!! I love Saskatchewan but Southern Sask, C’mon!! You are alone with wheat fields and pump jacks for hours, down to a single lane, fuel just doubled in price and the speed just went from 130km/h in the States with smooth roads to 100km/h on roads that want to dislodge any fillings you have in your teeth (Could be the 110psi’s in the motorhome tires;). This was a great time to look for pups!!
Guess what guys!!!! The world works in mysterious ways, doesn’t it? I optimistically started by searching for Poo-tons and there was an ad that was just posted a few hours before AND they were located on OUR WAY HOME!!! Meant to be? I think so!! I contacted them immediately and we had set up a time to go meet the cuties the next day.
Puppies are completely useless, and they bring a chaos, like babies, you can’t quite understand until you’re in it. We haven’t had a pup for 10 years, but I do remember, like my babies, crying every time we’ve had one. You know, lack of sleep, lack of patience, the training, allllll the pee and poo and generally wondering what the hell we actually got ourselves into!!!
So, when Nick suggested that we get 2 puppies instead of 1, I immediately said NO!!!! Are you crazy? We are just getting back home after a month away, school starts in 2 days, and we are not even practically prepared for 1 pup, never mind 2. In true Nick fashion, he let me have my internal freak out and waited me out!!! Don’t you think 2 would be better, they can keep each other company? You noticed we have 2 kids, right – this way they can each have 1!! Think of the responsibility they will learn!! We’re already training one, what’s the difference with two? Don’t you hate it when your husband is right??
I was a goner once we pulled up to meet those little cuties!!! Hey Nick, what’s the difference between 2 and 6? They were allllllll so crazy adorable and the kids were squealing the entire time.
We’ve only ever had male dogs, and I knew with Lily in the mix there was no chance she’d pick a boy, like ewww mom!! There were 2 males in the mix and this cutie chubby male slowly made his way to me and I plucked him up and he settled instantly!! This is our guy – can we choose this one? Meanwhile Jake has picked the runt of the litter that’s like a little jackrabbit, jumping, nipping, and generally looks like a handful.
This is exactly what he said, Mom – this guy has imprinted on me!!! He’s the smallest and I’m picking him because I was the smallest!! Alright chubby cutie that I’m holding – good luck at your future home.
Lily took to her pup right away; she wouldn’t let her go and she decided on her pretty much because she was a girl and breathing. Lily loves ALL animals (especially if they’re females) and would have picked them all if she could!!
What were the proposed names, you ask? Well, Jake wanted to name his, Shark Dog and Lily had excitedly told us Her’s would be named, Fluffy Mcflufferson – Hmmm, all great ideas buttttt, maybe they could let us know what else they had in mind. Jake loves Nasa and the Houston Astros, so he had eventually narrowed it down to Astro and then settled on Rocket – leaving shark dog in the rear view.
Lily uses her spare time to name everything she encounters and had Penelope lined up and ready to go so this moment was easy for her. She strongly and confidently announced Penelope, Penny for short, of course;).
We loaded them up in the ‘ol motorhome and they made it home where they slept in a box!! They were so small we had to get them cat collars and leashes. So it began, the sleepless nights – for Nick, anyways – a part of the 2-pup negotiation;).
Our Life is feeling full again!! We still miss and talk about Lloyd and Gunner all the time. It’s amazing how dogs can take your mind off the seriousness of life. They are ridiculous and we are thankful for them and the laughs, cuddles and craziness they have added to our home.
Willard Family Adventures 