Schoodle

These are the girls in the litter.  I like the one looking at the camera. :)

We are getting a schoodle!  In case you are not schooled in the now popular idea of breeding almost any dog breed with a poodle, a schoodle is a mix of a schnauzer and a poodle.  Both breeds do not shed, which makes it neat-nick friendly.  And when I say neat-nick you all know we are NOT talking about me! :)

Yep, I know some of you may be in shock that we are actually getting a puppy, but after months of visiting our local animal shelters and one failed attempt at adoption, we decided to go the puppy route.  This has been a new experience for me, since the only way I have ever experienced getting a dog has been through a shelter.  I have never gotten a pet from a breeder.

The four boys

 I am approaching our impending puppyhood as I do with almost everything.  I trot myself over to our library and check out every book I can find on the subject.  I checked out a few books for me, one for Josh and several children's books for the kids.  Then I hauled the load back to my house and we started our "Puppy Seminars".  The seminars were led my yours truly.  A seminar included watching a training video, eating popcorn and discussing how to use positive reinforcement with a puppy.  This almost meant speaking quite clearly to Kai that a puppy is not a toy and he/she can easily break if you are not gentle.  Hopefully this idea has hit home since Kai is quick to tell those that inquire about the puppy the following, "Puppies are little and you can NOT throw them down or they will break a leg!"  Yes, Kai that is correct.

This is the book we chose to order from Amazon and use as our home resource. This book says we'll have a smart puppy, so that's sure to occur if we follow all the rules right?  And look, it also says it will be "Fun, Effect and Easy!"  :)

One on-going game we've also played is "What should we name our name puppy?"  We are not sure if we will end up with a boy or a girl puppy.  So far we have "Cooper" if it is a boy, and "Eloise" or "Tilly" if it is a girl.  Our only real guideline in the selection process is that it have a laid back personality.  Part of the reason we are getting a puppy, and specifically a schoodle, is they are supposed to make great therapy dogs.  My hope is to train this dog to be a therapy dog and then take it to work with me once I graduate.  I know of a domestic violence shelter that uses a Maltese therapy dog. The women and children find petting and talking to the dog soothing, especially during intake interviews.  My hope is that our new puppy will not only be our newest family pet, but also a working companion for me.

We'll see.  Next weekend we head down to the breeder to make the final selection regarding the one we want to take home.  The breeder knows what we are looking for.  She is watching the pups for the one with the personality she thinks we are looking for.  We are waiting until 8 weeks to take the puppy home, which means we can pick it out on the 13th, but won't bring it home until the 19th.  (the breeder lets the puppies go home at 7 weeks, but the book suggests 8 weeks is the optimal time to take a puppy home, so of course I have to follow that guideline!)

I feel like I am puppy-pregnant; we are that excited over this new arrival.  I've never had a puppy before, in my entire life. I guess this feeling is why little kids across the world beg their parents for a puppy.