January 24, 2003
Due to changed circumstances, I was able to move up my departure date from my job and I finished up today. So I'll be able to pick up Dusty on the 25th after all! I'm very excited!
I phoned Hazel on Thursday to make arrangements. The entire litter is going to their new homes on Saturday. I'm so glad I was able to arrange this - it would have been sad for my dog to be the only one left! I'm scheduled for 2:00 p.m.
Hazel says that my little girl is very sweet and playful. She has a 'medium' disposition - not too passive and not wildly active. Perfect! She's gotten a lot bigger too! I can't wait to see her again!
I finished most of my dog-shopping last week. I have a sweater for her, since it's SO cold here. I bought several good training books online and I've been reading them diligently. I had to make a special trip for chew toys and treats this week and bought a bag of puppy food. My co-workers gave me a dog bed (basket-style) and a dog sweater as a parting gift.
I've been trying to get my weekly obligations out of the way. I bought enough groceries to last for about three weeks and I cleaned up the apartment tonight.
Today at Zellers, I bought some 'Fooey Spray.' After cleaning, I sprayed the furniture and some exposed electrical cords with it (I couldn't manage to hide all those wires, unfortunately). I still wasn't convinced that the spray was enough, though. It looks so inoccuous.
So, as an experiment I placed the very tip of my tongue against the dog bed, which I had sprayed with 'Fooey'.
BLEEEEEECCCCHHHHHHH!!!!!!
If I was a puppy, that would have been the first and last time I ever put my mouth near that dog bed. I'm a bit worried about it now - I don't want her to chew on her bed, but I *would* like her to sleep in it eventually (this won't happen right away, anyways, as I'm crate training her).
The worst part is, the bad taste stays with you. You can wash your mouth out and it's still there. I had to wash my hands 10 times after I finished 'Fooey-ing' the apartment, just to get the bitter stuff off my fingers.
I feel like I'm ready, but I'm still nervous. There will be so much to do and so much hard work ahead of me. The next week is going to be very busy with training and getting to know her. She will have so much to learn (as will I!)
I can't wait to get started!