AZ...the puppy!

LAST post regarding my trip to Arizona!

Rewind to Saturday 11/22, when Dan, my mom and I were heading toward Tempe Town Lake to go to the volunteer meeting/swim...

My mom walked ahead and crossed the street while I waited for Dan. All the sudden I hear her yell "LAURA! LAURA! PUUUUPPYYYYY!!!!!!"

How obnoxious, I thought, but whatever she's excited. She doesn't even really like dogs, weird!

So we catch up with her, and yes, she was playing with a VERY CUTE little puppy!!! Her owners, Carl and Tabitha, were very sweet and super friendly. They also had another dog with them, a friendly lab/rottweiler mix.

We come to find that they were looking for a home for the little puppy- Carl found her when he was driving to meet his friends for a run three weeks ago; She and her brother were in the middle of the street picking at a McDonald's bag and cars were swerving around the skin-and-bone little dogs! Carl picked them up, kept them in his truck while he ran, then when he returned home with the puppies he checked around his neighborhood to see if they belonged to anybody- no luck. Carl and Tabitha kept the puppies, fed them, took them to the vet to get their first shots, and even trained them a bit! They are a very busy couple- going to school, working, training, and keeping up with their own dog, so keeping the puppies wasn't a good option. They found a home for the boy (Carl's friend), but the girl (whose name was Gorgo-princess from The 300) still needed a home!

We come to found that they are avid dog lovers- their lab could do cool tricks like "Stick 'em up" where we puts both of his paws up when you"point a gun" at him! And the little girl would follow you on a leash, was house-trained, and was generally a good puppy! They thought she was a Rhodesian Ridgeback/maybe a little pit bull mix, as that was what a vet had told them. She didn't really have the "ridge" on her back though, but who cares, she was a good puppy!

My mom fell in love with her, and seriously considered bringing this dog back home to Illinois! She weighed a lot of options- since Beau (our lab) Ty (our awesome golden retriever, I miss him!) both died a year ago (Beau-old age, Ty-seizures) my mom and dad did enjoy the freedom of not having a dog, but then again, they missed the company, especially when Don and I are at school. With the economy having an effect on their business, my mom thought a puppy might be a good way to take their minds (especially my dad's) off the bad stuff and focus on something fun!

So, after meeting with Carl and Tabitha again that evening (so they could interview US as well- there were lots of people who wanted her!), my mom decided she was going to do it! Except, it was going to be a total SURPRISE for my dad- she let my grandparents, my brother, his girlfriend, and various other people in on the little secret (and to get their opinion), but total surprise for my dad. =)

Sunday after the race, Carl and Tabitha were around spectating and volunteering, so they brought Gorgo, and my mom and I got to play with her a little bit. On Monday, my mom made arrangements with the airlines, and her and Dan went to a pet store to buy a carrier for her (we had to take her ON the airplane and keep her under the seat!).

On Tuesday, we had to leave the hotel at 6:30 to get to the airport- Carl actually got up with her at 4AM, exercised her like crazy, and dropped the exhausted puppy off at our hotel at 6AM! He had made a little "puppy packet" for us, with some sample meds, reading, poopy bags, etc. How cool is that? They are so nice!

She was so good at the airport and on the plane- she loves cuddling, and sleeping. And that 's what she did. No howling or anything! What a good girl!

We brought her home, and my brother picked Dan, my mom, and the puppy up at the airport. My dad was still at work for a couple hours. When we arrived home, we debated her grand entrance...the result was pretty darn cute. We put her upstairs in our playroom, under a blanket, and let her sleep. When my dad got home, he said hi to me and my mom, then we told him that Don needed him for something upstairs- he went up (and we subtly followed), looked in the room, and saw this cute little thing sleeping.

"What is this?!...is this Blitz (referring to the little boxer Dan and I are in love with)?!"
"No....this is your dog Len"
(with a little smile, he couldn't help it)"Please don't tell me this is my dog..."
"Nope, it is."

He loved her! It went well!

Next was the debate about the name...Gorgo will be her middle name, but it took 1.5 weeks to determine a name! We thought about JUDY (haha), Tempe, Miley, Brandy, Annie, Nala, and a million others, but my dad decided on AZ (like Daisy without the D). Cute!

(I look mad but I'm not!)

So she's really cute, and she really is house-trained at 10 weeks old. And she loves her crate, she just goes in there when she wants to sleep. Perfect for my parents who were worried about the puppy messes. She can sit, stay, come, and RUNS on a leash! I took her running up to 2 miles when I was at home, and my mom runs with her as well. My mom also says she learning Stick em up! My mom took her to the vet, and he thought she was mostly "Staffordshire terrier" haha. My mom gets defensive about that. =) I'll post more over Christmas break! =) Welcome AZ!