It’s a GIRL!
IT’S A GIRL!!! ❤️❤️❤️
OUR NEXT BEAGLE HAS ARRIVED!!! Earlier this month, we applied to adopt a rescue beagle through Houston Beagle and Hound Rescue, and they actually called Monday morning the 22nd that they had a perfect match for us. We all wanted to be together to get her, though, so the first time the entire week that worked for our whole family & the foster mom was late Saturday the 27th. Waiting the week was...uneasy. Not just b/c waiting for her was hard - but b/c it made us hyper-aware that Bonnie Blue is really gone, for real... :’( We all had breakdowns; we prayed for God to take the hurt away & for Him to use this next pup to heal us. We *knew* when Saturday came with fresh, unique beagle reassurance & snuggles, we’d be able to start moving forward beyond that odd feeling. ❤️ Yes, the first couple days with the new pup felt slightly strange. I *knew* in my head I wasn’t abandoning Bonnie for her, but I had to keep remembering that quality relationships require time & effort, and just b/c her wonderful arrival didn’t instantly erase missing Bonnie, that doesn’t mean this new love won’t continue to grow & thrive every single day! Bonnie will NEVER, EVER be replaced, and it’s hard not to compare the love that lasted for YEARS when you’re back to starting from scratch... But there’s definitely sooo much pet love still to be shared!!!
Almost a week in, and obviously we are all doing just fine! ❤️ She’s ~3 years old, and we’re calling her Bailey. Bailey was “Jeanie” in foster care; we’ve wanted to name our next beagle Bagel for *years* ...but it just didn’t seem right on Saturday, so Will picked Bailey.
We’re most excited for & fascinated by the ways she’s different from Bonnie: Bailey’s not a licker - Bonnie would lick you pieces; it feels so different to nuzzle faces with Bailey & not hold your breath, bracing for dog tongue. :-P She started out very quiet - Bonnie barked when she got excited for ~5 minutes; Bailey didn’t bark once coming in our house, meeting anyone, playing fetch with her toys, seeing neighbors on a walk, running in the yard... She’s barking out in the backyard now, though, as she’s gotten more comfortable. Both are/were purebred beagles, but Bailey is taller, has a longer torso, much stockier limbs, longer ears, & a thinner tail; she loves standing up on her powerful hind legs, esp. to peek over the top of the couch - it’s so cute & something Bonnie never did. Bailey is also a HUGE snuggler!!! #dreamcometrue Bonnie would only snuggle in winter if she was cold & you had a blanket. :-D We think people have fed Bailey from the table, though; Bonnie NEVER ate people food - it made her barf - so she never flipped out for our fare. Bailey loses her mind over Annelise’s burrito, my bubble tea, JB’s sandwich, our pizza, etc. Everyone knows we prefer to eat at the couch, so I think this may be our greatest training challenge, but we’re working on it & have already made some progress. I have the same philosophy with her as I did when our kids were newborns: they are entering *our* lives; they need to get used to how our household works. The food thing is non-negotiable for us. :-P
That being said, of course there are a few things we need to adjust to, too. Even though they think she’s ~3 years old, she still chews like a puppy. :-O We already almost lost our TV remote, and we are learning that she is very intrigued by shoes, especially JB‘s leather slides. I bought her some Nylabone toys at Costco, thinking they would be the perfect outlet/treats for her chewing… aaaaand she has zero interest in them. No kidding. I’m literally going to return them. :-/ We need to watch her like a hawk in the backyard, too, b/c she’s so young & strong – we know she could dig out from under our fence pretty easily if she decided she wanted to. The happy news is, she doesn’t seem to want to, yet. ;-)
She honestly listens so well - she comes the instant I call, every time. We also worked a lot on building trust this week: I have to leave her home alone for a few hours every day for the gym, errands, kids’ activities, etc. The first time I was going to leave her alone on Monday, I wimped out: I made the excuse not to crate her, b/c I was a little nervous that Bonnie‘s crate might be a bit small for her. I said a prayer & left her loose in the house; I was confident taking this risk mostly b/c she has such a strong bladder, & pee was the only reason we ever crated Bonnie when we left the house during her last year. It’s wild getting used to a young pup, again, with a healthy bladder who doesn’t need to constantly go out!!! :-D She doesn’t need to go out overnight, & she has no problem holding it 12 hours - by her choice. The first few days & mornings, we kept shoving her out the door, and she was in no hurry to potty. Seriously, this is probably the most wonderful trait ever! (I think I still have pee PTSD from Bonnie’s last year...) So yes, when I came home after a couple hours, she was sitting sweetly on the couch exactly where I had left her. Each day this week, we’ve continued to build trust, as I left her for an hour longer each time. I think it’s safe to say we are pretty confident in our new routine now.
A few more things I want to note/remember:
• She’s freaked out by her own reflection! In the window glass, in the front of the oven, etc. She literally thinks it’s another dog. :-D Bonnie never paid attention to reflections, mirrors, the TV, or to voices & noises coming out of the TV or our phones. Bailey sees & hears ALL of it! Her reactions are hilarious.
• She prefers to sleep on the couch in the family room instead of in any of our beds with us. We tried her in every bed with each person in the house, and she was super restless; when she goes to sleep on the couch at night, she stays there & barely moves until everybody is up the next morning. This was quite a surprise! I couldn’t imagine a beagle not wanting to sleep in the bed with us… until I remembered the beagle who raised me, Lizzy: she would jump in the bed with me or my brother for a few minutes tops and then ditch us to sleep in the hallway. I had forgotten how crazy it drove me that she would never sleep with us at night; but she liked laying in the hallway, b/c it was the center of the house, and she could have her eye on everyone/everything through the night. (& it feels cool for me to remember that. :-))
• She likes leash walks & RUNS!!! I don’t know many beagles who do *normal* leash walks, simply b/c they have to stop & smell EVERYTHING - it feels like the most futile, unproductive venture you’ve ever undertaken. But Bailey seems to love them! She does stop & sniff a little, but she’s happy for you to put on her leash & literally go on a run with her! I’m *NOT* a runner, but this girl has gotten me to go on 2 runs already her first week! :-O As soon as football season ends for Will next week, the runs will be bequeathed unto him. ;-)
So yeah! We have a dog, again, and we’re excited to start this next chapter of our lives with her!
OUR NEXT BEAGLE HAS ARRIVED!!! Earlier this month, we applied to adopt a rescue beagle through Houston Beagle and Hound Rescue, and they actually called Monday morning the 22nd that they had a perfect match for us. We all wanted to be together to get her, though, so the first time the entire week that worked for our whole family & the foster mom was late Saturday the 27th. Waiting the week was...uneasy. Not just b/c waiting for her was hard - but b/c it made us hyper-aware that Bonnie Blue is really gone, for real... :’( We all had breakdowns; we prayed for God to take the hurt away & for Him to use this next pup to heal us. We *knew* when Saturday came with fresh, unique beagle reassurance & snuggles, we’d be able to start moving forward beyond that odd feeling. ❤️ Yes, the first couple days with the new pup felt slightly strange. I *knew* in my head I wasn’t abandoning Bonnie for her, but I had to keep remembering that quality relationships require time & effort, and just b/c her wonderful arrival didn’t instantly erase missing Bonnie, that doesn’t mean this new love won’t continue to grow & thrive every single day! Bonnie will NEVER, EVER be replaced, and it’s hard not to compare the love that lasted for YEARS when you’re back to starting from scratch... But there’s definitely sooo much pet love still to be shared!!!
Almost a week in, and obviously we are all doing just fine! ❤️ She’s ~3 years old, and we’re calling her Bailey. Bailey was “Jeanie” in foster care; we’ve wanted to name our next beagle Bagel for *years* ...but it just didn’t seem right on Saturday, so Will picked Bailey.
We’re most excited for & fascinated by the ways she’s different from Bonnie: Bailey’s not a licker - Bonnie would lick you pieces; it feels so different to nuzzle faces with Bailey & not hold your breath, bracing for dog tongue. :-P She started out very quiet - Bonnie barked when she got excited for ~5 minutes; Bailey didn’t bark once coming in our house, meeting anyone, playing fetch with her toys, seeing neighbors on a walk, running in the yard... She’s barking out in the backyard now, though, as she’s gotten more comfortable. Both are/were purebred beagles, but Bailey is taller, has a longer torso, much stockier limbs, longer ears, & a thinner tail; she loves standing up on her powerful hind legs, esp. to peek over the top of the couch - it’s so cute & something Bonnie never did. Bailey is also a HUGE snuggler!!! #dreamcometrue Bonnie would only snuggle in winter if she was cold & you had a blanket. :-D We think people have fed Bailey from the table, though; Bonnie NEVER ate people food - it made her barf - so she never flipped out for our fare. Bailey loses her mind over Annelise’s burrito, my bubble tea, JB’s sandwich, our pizza, etc. Everyone knows we prefer to eat at the couch, so I think this may be our greatest training challenge, but we’re working on it & have already made some progress. I have the same philosophy with her as I did when our kids were newborns: they are entering *our* lives; they need to get used to how our household works. The food thing is non-negotiable for us. :-P
That being said, of course there are a few things we need to adjust to, too. Even though they think she’s ~3 years old, she still chews like a puppy. :-O We already almost lost our TV remote, and we are learning that she is very intrigued by shoes, especially JB‘s leather slides. I bought her some Nylabone toys at Costco, thinking they would be the perfect outlet/treats for her chewing… aaaaand she has zero interest in them. No kidding. I’m literally going to return them. :-/ We need to watch her like a hawk in the backyard, too, b/c she’s so young & strong – we know she could dig out from under our fence pretty easily if she decided she wanted to. The happy news is, she doesn’t seem to want to, yet. ;-)
She honestly listens so well - she comes the instant I call, every time. We also worked a lot on building trust this week: I have to leave her home alone for a few hours every day for the gym, errands, kids’ activities, etc. The first time I was going to leave her alone on Monday, I wimped out: I made the excuse not to crate her, b/c I was a little nervous that Bonnie‘s crate might be a bit small for her. I said a prayer & left her loose in the house; I was confident taking this risk mostly b/c she has such a strong bladder, & pee was the only reason we ever crated Bonnie when we left the house during her last year. It’s wild getting used to a young pup, again, with a healthy bladder who doesn’t need to constantly go out!!! :-D She doesn’t need to go out overnight, & she has no problem holding it 12 hours - by her choice. The first few days & mornings, we kept shoving her out the door, and she was in no hurry to potty. Seriously, this is probably the most wonderful trait ever! (I think I still have pee PTSD from Bonnie’s last year...) So yes, when I came home after a couple hours, she was sitting sweetly on the couch exactly where I had left her. Each day this week, we’ve continued to build trust, as I left her for an hour longer each time. I think it’s safe to say we are pretty confident in our new routine now.
A few more things I want to note/remember:
• She’s freaked out by her own reflection! In the window glass, in the front of the oven, etc. She literally thinks it’s another dog. :-D Bonnie never paid attention to reflections, mirrors, the TV, or to voices & noises coming out of the TV or our phones. Bailey sees & hears ALL of it! Her reactions are hilarious.
• She prefers to sleep on the couch in the family room instead of in any of our beds with us. We tried her in every bed with each person in the house, and she was super restless; when she goes to sleep on the couch at night, she stays there & barely moves until everybody is up the next morning. This was quite a surprise! I couldn’t imagine a beagle not wanting to sleep in the bed with us… until I remembered the beagle who raised me, Lizzy: she would jump in the bed with me or my brother for a few minutes tops and then ditch us to sleep in the hallway. I had forgotten how crazy it drove me that she would never sleep with us at night; but she liked laying in the hallway, b/c it was the center of the house, and she could have her eye on everyone/everything through the night. (& it feels cool for me to remember that. :-))
• She likes leash walks & RUNS!!! I don’t know many beagles who do *normal* leash walks, simply b/c they have to stop & smell EVERYTHING - it feels like the most futile, unproductive venture you’ve ever undertaken. But Bailey seems to love them! She does stop & sniff a little, but she’s happy for you to put on her leash & literally go on a run with her! I’m *NOT* a runner, but this girl has gotten me to go on 2 runs already her first week! :-O As soon as football season ends for Will next week, the runs will be bequeathed unto him. ;-)
So yeah! We have a dog, again, and we’re excited to start this next chapter of our lives with her!
SO excited to hear this news!!!! Interesting to hear about all the ways she's different from Bonnie. Truly hope your family has many special years with this new member of the family!
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