Puppy Alamo!

Before you have actually had your very own puppy, that is all yours, that your the sole carer for this little living breathing thing, that you alone are taking care of without the "help" of your parents...well before you get them you don't know exactly what to expect. You really don't know how you are going to feel. Your emotions rest in the "I'm so freaking excited I don't know what to do with myself" state.

And then the little guy comes home, and you stay in that excited bubble, but the motherly instincts you have made fun of so many others for so many years, start to kick in. And it's ridiculous really because let's be honest it's a dog not a child, but all the sudden walking my own little puppy on a leash attached to its neck just seemed cruel, and inhumane. Not something I would have ever expected to feel. Not something I ever judged another for doing. But all the sudden, when I looked at my puppy with a leash attached to his neck, I started seeing flashes of the people you see at disneyland who keep tabs on their children by attaching them to a leash. I won't lie, I totally judge those people. Call me a terrible person but I think it is completely wrong to put children on leashes. I just really didn't expect to feel that way when I got my puppy. Go figure.

My point is that you just can't know how you are going to feel, before it happens. I got my puppy and he became as much a member of our household as my boyfriend or myself. I felt terrible to make him sleep on the floor, I just couldn't watch it. I started making up reasons for why he would cry. "He's just really tired...he's uncomfortable...he's just a puppy and wants to play." As if I would know, not like he could tell me any of these things but my puppy became my baby...totally was NOT expecting that. I'm the person that everyone makes fun of. I'm the one that goes out of my way to make excuses for my dog, and I'm the person who gives dirty looks to the people who talk shit about my dog. Who would have guessed? Not me.

I mean I get it, not everyone is a dog lover, I can respect that, but when you claim my puppy who just wants to play is in fact "trying to bite you", no he's really not, he's just a puppy. I totally stand up for my dog, yep I am now that person. Crazy right.

So we already know that I turned into puppy mama 2.0 the day I got my pup. It's ok the first step to recovery is Acceptance, but just like all these feelings I could have never expected to have, I also did not know what to expect out of teething. I mean, the horror stories are real people. I've heard plenty ranging from chewed up shoes to ruined furniture, very expensive furniture. I've heard of puppies going to town on baseboards, cabinets, bed frames, doors, you thought it couldn't be chewed but somehow a chunk out of the pillar in the entry-way was missing. We aren't talking minor mishaps here, these are full out major damages and the repair costs are the kind that burn a hole in your wallet. You could say that I was a little bit worried as the time for teething approached.

It just never happened. I haven't seen one chewed shoe let alone any rugs or furniture. The only thing I noticed was that my puppy started sleeping, all day long. And funny enough the opposite of chewing happened, he didn't want to chew at all, not even his food. Poor little guy, I could tell he was hurting (he didn't cry or anything but like I said I have puppy mama 2.0 instincts so I know.)

Despite his lethargic demeanor, when we got to #KODAtheadventuredog and #mountEVEREST's house, #KENAItheridgebackpup was back to his normal upbeat self. The dog knows where were going from miles away. Pulling up to their house he can barely contain his excitement. He NEVER pulls on his leash, until its time to get into their house, then all bets are off. I mean my puppy is a total mama's boy, except when we go to their house, then he's like see ya later mom, and by later I mean next time I get hungry, then I'll come and give you some love. (I feel so used).

Now, both Koda and Everest are alaskan malamutes, they have very thick, long fur. Koda is red and white and Everest as you may have guessed is completely white (clever right). They can get pretty dirty very quickly but breaking skin is a little bit tougher, I think, just because they are so damn fluffy. "He's so fluffy I could DIE!!!)

Somehow today though, one of the four pups here broke skin. #MightymountEVEREST came in with blood everywhere, fresh blood and it looked like it was gushing. She isn't technically my puppy, but there were those motherly instincts kicking in once again. I started to clean her up looking for the source of the bleeding when I noticed #kingKODA come in with blood pouring out of his back ankle and front right paw. I mean it was a bloodbath. How did I miss this? I didn't hear any commotion outside; no growling, no barking, no whining, nothing out of the ordinary playful sounds. The thing is though you just never know with #JAKEthedog. He did bite a chunk out of #PrinceKENAI's ear only a week and a half after we got him. #OldmanJAKE was the only puppy to come in squeaky clean though, not a speck of blood on him. That was unexpected.

Kenai however, had guilty written all over his face, well mouth I should say. The blood was practically dripping out of it. Now as a #furparent, this is the most devastating thing you could witness, that however, is something I would expect; I don't like vicious dogs at all! The thing that surprised me is that my puppy does not have an aggressive bone in his body, he thinks all dogs and people want to be friends with him. Even people who shoo him away or dogs that aren't afraid to show their fangs (and use them too), he still wants to play. The only noticeable trait I've seen in my little guy is that he is more like a #scardyCAT than a future #100pounddog. A larger dog comes running towards him and he runs to me with his tail between his legs. Actually now that I think of it, it could be a 7 pound chihuahua barking while chasing him, he still ran away crying with his tail between his legs. (Now that was one funny moment to witness. Aww I'm so mean, but yeah still so funny). To be honest though, I really like that my puppy has no desire to be the Alpha dog, I like that he gets along, I like that he's mellow. For me, it's more than alright that he's a lover and not a fighter, that was, until earlier today.

And when something like this happens, a million thoughts go through your head. I mean it's only been 2 and a half months but it was love at first sight with this little guy. I love him, but I don't like him all the time, especially the times when he pees all over my yoga mat or diarrheas on the downstairs rug, generally though I can't really fathom how we ever survived without him. So when I saw my puppy with a mouth full of blood, it was hard to accept that he had become a vicious cold blooded killer. I mean no he hadn't actually killed any people or animals, but a dog who is willing to get mean with his best friends, well that dog is downright dangerous and I had to accept that even if it did happen to be my sweet little puppy who would never hurt a fly.

I wanted to cry. Things just weren't adding up and I was feeling a bit unfit to be puppysitting, until we found the real culprit. Kenai's tooth was laying on the floor bloody next to all three puppies. Then he went to play with #EVERESTwhiteassnow and smeared blood all over her. So the truth was we didn't hear any vicious sounds because there was no malicious behavior. My little teething puppy was doing just what all teething puppies definitely do, losing teeth. Like so many other things I haven't expected since bringing my puppy home, I didn't expect he would lose so much blood when he lost a tooth. Now that was relief if I had ever felt it. You can only imagine how good it feels to confirm that your puppy is not a vicious killer. I looked at the blood drenched puppies in front of me with a huge grin. It looked like the Puppy ALAMO all because of a tiny tooth. 

Next time I'll take a Raincheck!

Ok so let's be honest, we are spoiled rotten in Southern California. I know there are other beautiful places to visit (trust me I've seen them), but nothing beats 75 degrees and sunny standing on the beach in the middle of February. I'm not trying to brag, I consider myself one lucky girl to live in such an amazing place, but hands down we have the best weather in the world. Well normally.

Now I know if you are sitting in some freezing cold corner of the world you are going to be judging me while reading this entire post. After all, what's a little rain in comparison to 14 inches of snowfall in a single night as a blizzard was passing through. And I commend you for being tough enough to survive. Somehow when you live in a cold and dark place you learn how to cope with it. Welcome to living in the Netherlands during their coldest winter they had experienced in 28 years (how I managed that timing is beyond me) but really, have you ever played ice hockey on a frozen pond? ...because I have. And I will tell you it has to be freeze your a$$ off cold for a pond to be frozen enough to skate on. What I'm getting at is that I can totally relate to surviving in cold weather, it's not that big a deal, you get used to it. Stop complaining you California pussies.

In our defense though, when you are sitting a million miles away on the opposite side of the planet where winter is filled with sunshine and smiles, braving the cold takes a lot more courage. Clouds are scary and rain, well... rain seems like the end of the world.

Fast forward to present day Southern California winter, we're smack dab in the middle of what is being called the most EPIC El Nino in history. It's been really tough. During one day in January I remember how bad the weather was because my puppy was having none of it. On that day he just sat and cried when I took him out to pee. He can be one stubborn puppy, he sat there with his head droopy, he whimpered and he refused to pee in the rain, he went promptly after we got back inside though. It was a really hard day as you can tell. Even my puppy was not happy about this El Nino business. Other than that though, I have to be honest, this heavy Crazy El Nino season has been disguising itself as a lovely second summer.

That is until yesterday. Normally when this kind of weather presents itself I'd brew up a nice hot cup of chai tea and snuggle up on the couch, space heater blasting, watching the latest episode of the Bachelor, getting my fill of puppy cuddles. Why brave the cold when you can hold off for a day until the sun comes back out. But we had promised an epic 10 mile Anniversary hike with my little sister and her boyfriend. Celebrating 7 years of togetherness, you don't back out on that just because a little rain. We left our house a 6am. It was a 2 hour drive to the trailhead, we were sure the rain would pass.

It poured the entire way to San Diego. We stopped briefly to meet up with our caravan and decided the rain would surely clear up by the time we got up the mountain. The weather report stated differently, but we were confident and we weren't backing down. The drive was filled with thick fog and heavy rain. As we headed up the mountain I watched the thermostat drop in temperature. We arrived at the trailhead, it was 36 degrees and pouring. I stepped outside and deeply regretted that I had not yet purchased my down jacket also that I had left my all weather jacket at home. I was so grateful though that I decided to bring my heavier fleece that morning, more out of convenience than anything else. It happened to be laying on the couch from the other night when I wore it to the dog park at 9:30pm. Luckily the material was somewhat water resistant.

My puppy is not a fan of the rain but he braved it so he could go and hike with his good friend #KODAtheadventuredog. The BF was the most surprising of everyone. He was grinning and bearing it. I expected a lot more complaining. 5 steps into the hike though, "It's not too late to turn back!!" He said it with a joking smile. He was totally serious though. On the inside I really wanted to go home, but you can't turn your back on a 7 year celebration, not because of a little rain. We trekked forward.

Within the first 10 minutes I wished I had worn another pair of pants and a jacket and a poncho with a portable space heater; the rain had completely soaked through all of my clothes. I was so thankful for the waterproof hat underneath the beanie I was wearing, at least it was able to keep my head dry and the rain out of my face. At this point it was no secret that I wanted to turn around, I was shivering and wet, but everyone else kept their spirits up. Hell, the BF and our puppy, who hates rain, were leading the pack. They were 300 ft in front of us and going fast enough to steadily widen the gap.

The wind had picked up noticeably and ripped through my soaking wet clothes, I was beyond ready to turn around but the BF had my keys and my puppy so I kept putting one foot in front of the other. We all made jokes about how this would be the best hike we had been on this year, how the most unfortunate conditions made for the very best stories. I mean Bee was in shorts and hiking with ease. #KODAtheadventuredog was loving life. He was leading and couldn't be happier with this miserable weather. I would say he preferred it, I guess he is originally from ALASKA. #KENAItheridgebackpup looked from 300ft behind as if he was enjoying himself. I mustered a fake smile as my hands went numb. We kept walking.

Finally the leaders stopped to let us catch up. When we got there, #KODAtheadventuredog had a huge grin on his face, then I saw #KENAItheridgebackpup. He was attempting to hide from the rain behind the BF. He was whimpering and shivering ferociously. I gave in "Babe, I want to turn around."

I'll be honest, I was the one who was pushing to grin and bear it from five in the morning before we ever left. It wouldn't be that bad. It's just a little rain, no big deal. Almost 2 miles in though the weather had completely killed my pride. The BF did not hesitate at the opportunity. He was totally drenched and as cold as both the puppy and myself. I felt terrible, 7 years is a lot to turn your back on. But I couldn't do it. I couldn't feel my hands or my feet and I just wanted to get back to the car.

I didn't realize how far we had actually walked though. When we turned around we were walking against the wind, I didn't think it could get worse, but it totally did. Poor #KENAItheridgebackpup had his tail between his legs the entire walk back to the trailhead. He would run forward a bit then wait for us with his head down, crying the whole time. I don't blame him, he is not from ALASKA, actually the opposite in AFRICA. Braving the heat is welcomed by this puppy. The rain is an entirely different story.

Finally we approached the trailhead, the BF hadn't noticed but I knew it was coming and #KENAItheridgebackpup did to. He was off leash and made a sprint for the car. My fur-parent instincts kicked in, the car meant the highway, and the highway meant fast moving vehicles. The BF chased down my puppy and brought him safely to the car. I was sure he would grab the blanket out of the back and try and wipe down some of the mud from the puppy. I guess that didn't happen, When I got to the car the blanket was stowed safely in the back and #KENAItheridgebackpup had already jumped in the car to shake off all the muddy water. Perfect! I wasn't entirely happy about the situation, mostly because I was pretty much numb from the eyes down and didn't want to stand in the rain to try and clean up the mess. I accepted defeat and got in the car.

Despite the heater being on full blast and my seat heater was on high, I continued to shiver along with my puppy. The goal was just to get home and get in a hot shower. Kenai shivered the entire ride back, poor puppy. I tried to hold him close but my body heat may have been at an all time low at that point. I could have rang out a gallon of water from all of our clothes. There wasn't an inch on any of us that had stayed dry. We took a hot shower promptly after arriving home.

My lil sis and the rest of the crew arrived shortly after us. Within an hour if I had to guess. Apparently they had made a few wrong turns and cut the 10 mile hike in half. Ponchos, rain jackets and all, they too were completely soaked through. Tea poured a significant amount of water out of her boot. I've heard of squeaky shoes but I've never actually seen someone pour an entire pitcher of water worth out of their shoe. Of course the sun had decided to show itself by that point. It wasn't a terrible hike but I won't lie, it would have been so much more enjoyable on a day it was not pouring rain and under 40 degrees.

Now, I know what all of you on the other side of the world, living through a horrific winter are thinking-this girl is a wimp for turning around early-you would have stuck it out, you are immune to unpleasant weather conditions and frankly probably a better person than me. The thing is though, in Southern California it doesn't take 6 months to see the sun again, and I've decided that the sun is not overrated. It's really not about not being able to handle the rain or the cold, it's about not wanting to. So although it made for a good story, next time I wake up to pouring rain on the day of a hike, maybe even a 7 year celebration hike, I'll take a RAINCHECK because we can snuggle up, drink chai tea and reminisce about the last 7 years inside next to the fire. Next time we'll do the epic 10 mile celebration hike the next weekend when there's not a cloud in the sky.