Truth time: Yes, I have wondered if my timing was correct in adding another addition to my household. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have 2 heart dogs in my life at the same time.  Do I have a big enough heart to give the necessary time and love to an additional dog? I now have no doubt in my mind, I do.  It’s confirmed every moment I spend with Keebler.  She’s a bit of a magical mystery to me. And I love it.

Thanks to a couple of friends asking me about litters of puppies I’d recommend, I was looking a bit harder at potential litters than I would if they hadn’t.  And because they had, I searched Candy Kennedy’s planned breeding page because I trust her and seem to mesh with her style of dog (Uh… Epic is my heart and soul (second to Gadget of course- gosh, I’ve been lucky)).  She had a breeding planned with her imported bitch from Wales (lines I’ve been watching for quite some time now) and Epic’s father, Gear.  I told some people about it and said to quite a few, “If Epic were older, I’d be getting one of those puppies.”  Now this was about the time I was dealing with Epic’s shoulder injury and I was in a pretty bad place mentally.  Unhappy and restless in my job and when I came home, I had an injured dog that looked at me constantly with the most sad eyes because he didn’t understand why he couldn’t run and play like a normal 1 year old.  It crushed me. Absolutely crushed me.  I felt the need to have someone else to train, for multiple reasons.   I was incomplete.

So, I asked to be on the list for a puppy.  I was not sure I was getting a puppy until about a week and a half before flying out to get her.  There were a lot of external factors going on and so I put trust in the hand of the universe.  With that, I had zero doubt it was meant to be when I was told the little tri girl was mine if I still wanted her.

My mom accompanied me out to California and we had an amazing first evening and morning out on Manhattan Beach.  Everything went so incredibly smoothly on the trip.

I didn’t really know what Keebler looked like or what to expect.  We didn’t have video or photos to be able to judge her structure before flying out, yet I wasn’t worried.  I had a feeling of purpose out in California.  I was, however, guarded.  I couldn’t name her because I knew I could show up and have to turn her away if I had any reservations.

When we showed up to meet and pick up Keebler, she had no name, except for her litter name, Bean.  She ran right to me when I entered the house, but then ran and hid from me the rest of the time I was there.  Most would say, that’s a sign you shouldn’t be together. I was reminded of her brother, Epic, who wasn’t so into me either when I picked him up.  Yet, Epic didn’t hide from me, he just wasn’t very interactive with me. I was comforted by this thought and kept saying it over and over in my head during the drive back to the coast.  I was already planning how to work with this challenge and socialize Keebler and how I needed to believe in her.

We named Keebler on the drive to the coast. I think we saw through the shell she hid behind. Keebler is a happy name. An outgoing name.  Uncommonly made, uncommonly good. She is just that.  Made with a little Elfin Magic.

Taking dogs out of a litter is a mysterious thing to me.  During puppy testing at 7 weeks, you take each puppy out individually in a new place and observe their reaction.  Sometimes the most confident puppy in the litter is the most uncomfortable puppy outside their home.  Oppositely, the more timid puppy can sometimes be observed blossoming away from their litter. Free to be themselves.

Two hours after picking Keebler up, she blossomed.  It was unrecognizable.  She was confident, chasing me, and greeting every person she could.  She knew this world was hers.

Keebler has found her groove.  Epic is in love and believes she belongs to him.  I could not ask for a better mesh.