Friday, May 21, 2010

Questions???

Today, while I was cracking my head to think on what to write for the blog and my muse was apparently not with me at all; some questions suddenly propped up...

  • How many furkids would you like to have
  • How many furkids is called 'enough' either for you or your family?
  • Why do you have only ONE?
  • Why do you have MORE than one?

I know my questions sound silly or irrelevant. Okay, let me do a little bit of explanation here if you bear with me:

We brought Laura home 10 years ago because Rosie asked for a dog. I tried to make it difficult for her by asking her to tell me 10 good reasons for having a dog. I did it because I didn't have any dogs at home at that time and didn't really plan to get one. So, I thought it would be a task for a 5 years old girl and it could save me from not getting her a dog. Well, you all know it well that I simply underestimated her.


For the next 7 years, Laura was the one and only doggy at home. We're relieved and happy that she passed her 7th birthday as many of our friends' rotties didn't make it to 7 years old so we're worried too.

Then one day, Rosie had this idea of having another doggy in order to keep Laura company as she had been so lonely for the past 7 years. A decent reason that she had and it's so kind of her to be so considerate : )

Somehow, we live very close to SPCA and there we got our Mika home. We thought we rescued a dog and gave it a better home to live. Have I told you how we picked Mika out out from so many other adorable puppies, teendoggies and adults? If not, I'll tell you next time. It's a funny story... so be patient!!!


The story developed into a longer one. A year later, Hana was for adoption and we became her adopted family.

Is 3 enough??? I guess so. AND I told myself 3 is MORE THAN ENOUGH!

BUT Hana was sent by god with a package of 2 in 1. That's how we got our little darling princess Eva girl. I mean how could we say no to this little NO.4 when she arrived at our doorstep on her own?

We got 4 at last.

Sadly, 2 months after Eva's birth, Hana passed on the Valentine's Day due to her kidney failure and Eva girl lost her mummy's love and care.

Eva girl, 16 days old resting on her mama's paw

It turned out 3 again.

BUT 
What about one day when Laura leaves us? Do we just stay with two dogs or get another one?
Honestly, two is more than enough for us to manage. But if you were in our shoes, would you get another one? 

Rosie has an obsession with rotties and that obsession will never go away. She always wants a rottie in her life but we told her to consider some facts like rotties are extremely strong and rough, what if during play, Eva gets injured...even unintentionally? Even a rottie pup is going to be bigger than Eva as an adult isn't it? I think that she's finally decided (hopefully without changing her mind in the near future) that when she's older, she'll get her own rottie that she herself will take care of properly and take full responsibility of it ... because the rotties she wants come from all sorts of kennels in Europe like Spain, Serbia, Sweden, Germany, etc. you name it, she wants it. LOL!

So back to the original question. Would you get another one? 

Well, Hana's previous owner, a sheltie breeder, the lady who technically bred Eva is getting a blue merle from Korea soon to be mated with one of her males. 

AND Rosie is contemplating this scenario ... A beautiful blue merle girl/boy ...
So...what if a stunning blue merle entered the family? At least two shelties cannot injure each other unintentionally and they can be great companions (Rosie's explanations). I'm really cracking my head now!!!

I think 3 is a great number. 3 humans = 3 dogs! 
Did I make sense?


Again,
 how about you??? 
Would you keep your number or would you let your number grow? 

15 comments:

katie, Maizey and Magnus said...

oohhh priscilla, you ask the age old question all of us true dog lovers constantly ask and seldom have the answer to.

Being a Rottie girl myself I feel like saying that once you have Rottie in your blood it doesn't go away. But Owning a Rottie is a HUGE responsibility. There are so many wonderful things about owning a Rottie, but there are some really heavy parts too.

Please encourage Rosie to consider the pro's and con's of being a Rottie Mom very carefully. If she truly has Rottie in her blood she will be able to honestly examine all aspects of owning such a wonderful, but very powerful breed. And not just from the view of what she wants but from the view of what would be best for her Rottie pup. And she will probable end up with one someday, but to me there are complications that go with a rottie that aren't there with other breeds. Even things like home owners insurance, breed legislation and peoples prejudice have to be considered.

I guess this may not sound too positive and I certainly don't mean to be discouraging, but as you know I take Rottie parenting very seriously.

It is wonderful you are so careful with your "4 legged" decisions and rescuing always gets a thumbs up from us. Hope this at least gives you some food for thought.

Fabulous pics by the way! And sorry this is sooo long!:)

koko said...

My hoomans say that for them, it's always one dog at a time just to ensure the dog has all the attention and love during his/her lifetime here. And my hoomans are weird as they won't go for the same breed twice... coz each dog is irreplaceable eventhough it's the same breed.

Licks, hero

Sara said...

I had one dog for 7 years. I thought that was best. Then I got Misty. I saw how much they enjoyed each others company. Now, I think I would never have less than two.

For some reason, I have been unable to make the leap to 3....maybe it is because I let them sleep on my bed? LOL.

Lian said...

One thing I can assure you Priscilla, ONE sheltie is never enough! They are saying going here ... shelties are like crips, one is never enough!

I always wanted 4 shelties to complete the family but how many did I ended up? 7 at a time! On No, it will be EIGHT soon!!!!!

Happy (2005 -2011) said...

how about a border collie? :)

Remington said...

Great post! We have always had one dog and four cats. We say after one passes -- that's it! But we always seem to end up with that same number again....I love my fur friends and have a feeling they will always be a part of our lives....no matter what we tell ourselves somedays....ha ha! I hope you have a fun filled weekend!

Mini Aussie Ace! said...

I love your post!!
Well, growing up, we had family dogs, but usually only one at a time! We got Ace and Ace alone because as this being our first furbaby together (and realistically taking care of a doggie without any family help) we felt it was enough to have one pup!
I would love to have 2 or 3 furkids though! Most likely two! I am already putting the pressure on for a second one. haha Once Ace is 1.5 or 2 I would like to get another mini aussie pal for him! I am not sure if I want a boy or girl though!!! Ace really loves other dogs, so I know another pup for him to play with everyday would be his dream!!!
We need to wait though, because we need a house with a yard! We will be looking though and hopefully we will be able to get a second one then!
I am not sure though which color combo we would get....I would like to have another blue merle <3 they are SO pretty!

Bandit's Pack said...

If we had more space and lived in a climate that wasn't so rainy all the time, I'd definitely get more dogs. I'm in love with Bandit's sister, Piper, who lives in Southern California. Now, I'm in love with his newborn sister, Pearl. Both girls are blue merles. I'd also love to have a red tri standard Aussie. If I lived on a farm or had lots of acreage, we'd definitely have a pack of dogs. I'd love to have a couple of "rescue" dogs, too.

Cloud the Wonder Dog said...

Great questions! I used to have a brudder, but he went to the Bridge last year. I kind of like being the only dog, because I'm a total mammas boy and want all the attention.

But sometimes she thinks about getting me a sister. Dad is not sold on the idea...

Luv,
Cloud

AC said...

I do think dogs need company from other canines, but when Kona yanks me down the trail after a rabbit, I'm thankful that I don't have two canines pulling on me!

Diana said...

I have 4 dogs. 3 was plenty for me but when Guiness couldnt do agility anymore and I really wanted to keep on, I got another dog. 4 is all I can handle. ( famous last words) LoL Diana

D.K. Wall said...

Everytime we hit a number, we would say that is enough. One more would be too much to handle and be fair to the dogs. But then we would end up with just one more.

Right now - six. And that is enough. We could not handle another. Serious.

koko said...

FYI, the place we had dinner was at Desa park... the restaurants there do allow dogs but normally at the open area... do go on a weekday if possible as weekends can be quite crowded at times.

Licks, hero

Yoda_the_Dog said...

Mom and dad have me, another dog and 4 cats. They started with 2 cats and one died. They went to adopt a kitten and found brother and sister kittens all by themselves at Pet Smart. How could they just take one. Then dad got another at work. Lots to think about!

Piappies World said...

We have 7 Piappies now and it truly is a LOT of work. Thankies to my Mom and brother as we help each other in raising and looking after them.

Growing up, I was attached to only 1, Koko. When he crossed the rainbow bridge after 9 1/2 years, it really broke my heart. When my Mom got Princess two years ago, we did not expect we'd see her grow her pack with 3 on the first year and another 2 this year. We were planning to have Wai-Pai and Wai-Max adopted by we all decided to keep them too.

We would not be able to manage more than that. I do admit though that the love and happiness each of them bring sure makes it all worthwhile. =)


-Fudgie, Princess, Frappie, Mocha, Sugar, Wai-Pai, Wai-Max & the Piappies

 
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