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| McKinley "Mack" Named for Mt. McKinley in Alaska |
Let's face it, if I could live at the zoo, I would. To say I'm an animal fanatic is a huge understatement. I was thrilled with our 1 American Eskimo dog. Our Juneau is a love. I adore him. But for a while now I've felt the desire to have another dog.
We live in a nice neighborhood, but break-ins are the crime of choice across this city. My neighbors across the street were broken into in broad daylight, while I sat at my dining room window that faces their house, homeschooling the boys all day [burglars broke in the back door and that's why I never saw a darn thing]. Having a dog can help deter a burglar in some cases.
Juneau's recent separation anxiety also made me wonder if he could use a new friend. It has been about 13 months since Juneau's littermate brother Kenai was killed by something mysterious in our backyard. I'm not sure if dogs can sense those milestones like people do, but the dog that once didn't cry or whine a bit when we left the house, turned into a howling mess when we'd run out on errands. Perhaps a new canine friend would be good company for him.
To add to that, I like having a little extra security in the house when Jay is gone. He doesn't travel much for work at all, maybe once or twice a year, but having a big dog by my side makes me feel just a bit more secure. Again, we don't live in a dangerous area at all, but this isn't the Midwest either, this is a big city!
So, I had been searching for a Samoyed for a long time. The nearest Samoyed rescue to us is an 8 hour drive away and they wouldn't allow us to adopt due to the great distance. Other rescues charged as much as a purebred puppy from a breeder. That angers me. I understand that rescues have costs that can add up with large vet bills, but I firmly believe that rescues shouldn't be charging hundreds of dollars for adult dogs, especially if these are strays pulled off the street.
I had hoped that we might be able to find a Samoyed in Illinois when we go home for Easter. There is a large rescue right there in the suburbs near my hometown. But that rescue never emailed me back when I asked questions about a couple of their available dogs.
Then after a weekly Petfinder search, I found a Samoyed mix right here in our city. His pictures made me smile and his described personality sounded like it would be a good fit with our family. And the rescue's small adoption fee was right in line with my wallet too. So on a Sunday afternoon we went to an adoption event at a local pet supply store to meet him.
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| Petfinder Photo #1 Love the one ear up, one ear down. |
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| Petfinder Photo #2 |
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| Petfinder Photo #3 Love the blue tongue! |
Love at first sight! He walked beautifully on the leash with me and the boys. He was very submissive. We stood and talked to his foster-mom for quite some time and asked all the appropriate questions. She had me fill out an application and told me to take him home for a trial period to see how he'd get along with Juneau. Honestly, to my surprise, we left with the dog! I really had intended to just go meet him, leave him there and head home to pray about it for a while. But when we learned that we could take him for a trial period without spending a dime, we left with him.
And we're not sending him back!
Juneau has to learn how to play again because Mack just wants to play with him. And Juneau gets territorial and jealous, but it's very trainable behavior. Mack needs basic obedience training because he was once a stray and has no indoor manners (he is house trained though), so I have to teach him not to go after shoes and the kids' toys, etc. And he needs to learn his new name (he didn't even respond to his given name at the foster mom's home despite living with her for 2 months). But he is so trainable! In just 2 days he learned that he cannot go upstairs (yet). He looks, but he doesn't follow me up there. Of course, I knew he'd be a great dog, when on Day 2 in our home, he followed me into the bathroom. Ha!
We're not sure what Mack is mixed with. We do believe he's part Samoyed but he has one ear that flops down 95% of the time and both ears are tan. His fur isn't as white as a Samoyed's would be, so he could be part Chow Chow, maybe Golden Retriever, Akita, something brown. And he has that blue tongue, which Samoyeds don't have. He's big! I can't lift him. And he has a warning bark that makes me feel secure, but his play bark is surprisingly high pitched! He is very affectionate too and loves to be hugged. He's a great dog just as he is! When he's trained he'll be awesome!
Welcome, Mack!
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| Happily relaxing together in the kitchen. |
