Shorty

To tell the full story, we have to start with Biscuit and Gravy!

Several years ago we adopted a pair of very sweet cocker spaniels from the Humane Society of Truckee Tahoe. We named them Biscuit and Gravy. Gravy was almost 2 and Biscuit was around 13. About 4 months after bringing them home, one night we put the dogs outside to go potty before bed and they dug a hole under our fence and escaped. Tragically, Gravy was hit by a car. Biscuit found his way back home the same evening. Animal services came and let us spend about 30 minutes saying
goodbye to Gravy. That weekend we planted a rosebush in our front yard and buried his collar. We also re-enforced our backyard and created a dog run with much better security.

Biscuit was spunky and sneaky for a senior dog. He LOVES food, more than any dog could possibly do so. We got him a halloween costume- he ate half of it. We baked some brownies, he found his way on top of the counters and ate the whole pan. We invested in a heavy duty, super fancy trashcan (thanks Maria for the suggestion!) and that finally curbed his appetite for the trash! He loves to snuggle and walks well on leash, never barks. Little by little, Biscuit became my dog. Not the family dog, but my dog. The girls got bored because he didn't want to play fetch. And I was feeling sad about Gravy and bonded with Biscuit more.

So fast forward to our move to Washington this last summer. Biscuit stayed with my cousins and their family (they have four kids), while we were moving. We had this grand plan of reuniting eventually, but something happened. Biscuit became their dog! I knew something was happening when on one of our last days, he stopped running to me to say hello. He titled his head, as though to say, Hey, how are you? I"m good right here. I have been in denial about it. My cousins sent us pictures, we sent him a Christmas present, and on facebook Biscuit was living his best life, loving being loved 24/7!

Our reunification plan got the final nail in its coffin when my cousins texted to say, yeah...y'all can't have him back. He is now on Team Williams.  They were so right! The best thing for him is to remain with his new family, who he had been bonding with since day one. I think from the time Kay stayed with us for a few weeks, she and Biscuit were scheming! And it's nice. Because he is getting so much love :-)

So...where does that leave us? Wanting a dog of course! But now, we're picky. So picky. Because we have been through this process twice now. And we have such a better understanding of what it takes to be good dog parents, what our family needs are, what our limits are. And thus, our search for a new dog member began last October and wrapped up in February. We met many dogs, traveled all over the state of Washington, and found Shorty.

Shorty!

He is 10 years old. Was found wandering around and ended up at the Old Dog Haven rescue where he was meant to live in hospice. But Shorty is a fighter. He fought through fleas, skin infections, dental issues, heart murmurs, and slight blindness. He is gentle until he's fierce; it is assumed that he was attacked by bigger dogs and now if a dog bigger than him is nearby, he growls and firmly plants his feet. His whole demeanor changes to say, Not today, don't mess with me, I will end you! All 20 pounds of him, just waiting to take on Goliath. It would be hilarious if it wasn't so sad!

Being smaller than the girls, they are confident in their handling of him.  And though small, he's not "cutesy", his rough edges make him oh so appealing to Matt. Definitely not a purse dog!

Shorty is everything we were looking for in a dog. I think he and Biscuit will be besties when they meet :-)