**I wrote this blog 2 months ago but for some reason it never showed. I am posting it now so you can enjoy as well. Since such time, the love has only grown....and so has the spoiling**
Let me start by saying that while I know that "furbabies" don't replace the empty hole where a child should be, I have 2 and consider myself the momma of 2 dachshunds. Goliath came to us 2 years ago at 7 weeks old weighing 2.7 lbs. Jethro was a rescue from the Joplin tornado and has currently been with us 3 weeks today. The vet estimates him being 2 to 2.5 years old. We went with 2 yrs old and gave them both the same birthday- August 13th. He weighs in at 12.4 lbs. They weigh less then 22lbs total yet think they are much bigger and that they rule the world. At least at our house.....they do!
Goliath stole our hearts the second we saw him. This tiny boy saved me in ways I'll never be able to explain. There was a period of 18 months when my husband worked opposite shifts from me and I think without Goliath here to keep me company, I would have gone insane with depression over the fact that I was alone in the house. When Goliath got sick a few months back, it broke my heart. I thought for sure I was losing him and I didn't want to think of what our lives would be like without him in the house. In fact when we leave and go on vacation, it's always an emotional time for me to drop him at his "girl-friends" and return to an empty house. No puppy loves, no kisses, no cuddles....for us it seems so unnatural.
When my husband started working the same shift as me again we started feeling bad about leaving Goliath home alone for the day without any company. This is when we decided to get him a friend. We had searched for a good 6 months for the right "brother/sister" when we came across Jethro on Joplin's facebook page. We drove the 2.5 hours to go get him after seeing such a sad looking pup in the picture they posted. Jethro was found 5 weeks ago running the streets and the Humane Society started calling him Chance after the street he was found on (we like Jethro better). We took Goliath to meet him as we knew it was ultimately Goliath's decision as it is Goliath's house. :)
I rode in the back seat the 2.5 hours home and Jethro clung to my shoulder scared and shaking. After about an hour I was able to get him on to the seat laying next to me but never removing a paw from my leg. From that moment, I knew that he was going to need loving to bring him out of this scared shell. Watching Goliath watch him was sad- it was almost like Goliath was trying to figure out what had happened to him in his life before us. Sadly or maybe fortunately we will never know.
When we got Jethro home we realized that not only was he a torando victim but was scared of people as well. We can only assume someone use to beat the poor boy. He would never walk behind us, always ahead and always backing out of the room so he wouldn't take his eyes off of us. He found a spot on the couch and slept for days. We are sure it was the first time in at least 3 weeks that we know of that he had a bed, dry shelter and quietness. It took some time but his playfulness finally came about and Goliath and he were having the best of times. In fact they have destroyed 2 pillows, 1 stuffed monkey, 1 stuffed flamingo, 1 stuffed puppy dog and today a body pillow. The only time that seems to bother Goliath is when it's time for bed and Jethro beats him to sleeping next to momma...he's not really in to sharing me yet.
We have been pad training inside for when we can't get them outside quick enough. Goliath has used it for 2 years without problem. Jethro is an outdoor dog. He dances when he needs to go out but has begun to use the pad unless he wakes from a nap and then he just pees where ever. This has not made for a happy momma however after 3 weeks, he seems to finally understand where to go and that going in the right spot equals treats.
Until yesterday I had kept Jethro at a distance in my heart which I know is wrong but I was afraid to get too attached incase he wasn't going to work with Goliath and we would have to rehome him. I would like to think I wouldn't do that to children if we are ever blessed- but at a distance he remained. Since the pups have decided that destroying things is fun, we baby gate them in the kitchen while we are gone. Last night we went to a football game and when we returned, we knew right away things were bad. There was diarrhea everywhere with blood in it. We were not sure at first which pup it was so we got it all cleaned up and took down the baby gate and sat down with the dogs. Then Jethro started pooping with blood again as well as throwing up. He climbed into the bed in the kitchen and layed down which is not his norm. I called the emergency vet and they said that we could either bring him to them (for near $100 plus test cost) or wait until our vet opened this morning to test for internal bleeding. Sadly since we didn't know what to expect expense wise we had to wait however I decided to sleep in the living room with him incase he got sick again.
Jethro fell asleep in the kitchen bed and Goliath fell asleep next to me on the couch. About 30 mins later Jethro came to me. He climbed up on me, layed on my legs, I covered him up and he fell asleep. I felt his head which was warm and his little nose was no longer wet so I knew something was wrong. I tried to sleep but was afraid if I did I would wake to find him have passed away in my lap. I kept one hand on his heart which was beating slow and one on Goliath's to compare their beats. Goliath was so sympathic to his brother and kept coming up and giving kisses and laying back down. Jethro didn't move all night. At 7am I got up for a drink and was preparing to get dressed and take him to the vet. My husband came out of the room as Jethro jumped off the couch, went pee, ate food and started playing with Goliath.
My husband and I just looked at each other trying to understand what had just happened. This could not be the pup I had held in my lap all night preparing for him to pass. Since then he has used the bathroom with no blood, ate, drank and has played as if nothing was wrong. I called the vent anyway to see what they suggested and they told us to watch his next stool and if there was no blood in it, it was probably just a stomach bug; if there was blood, to bring him in asap.
After thinking about it we are wondering if it could be the stuffing from one of their conquests that irritated his stomach. Either way, he is now fine and both are taking a nap (momma took a 3 hour one as well). After last night I realized that I love Jethro just as much as Goliath and could not imagine not having him here with us. It is hard to realize that something so tiny could make such a huge impact in our lives so quickly.
I tell you all this so that those that question our desire to have a child and question if we could feel love for a child that may be sick or hurting could stop wondering. Our furbabies mean the world to us right now and while we know they do not compare to a child- for now, they are our babies. We would do anything for these 2 pups just as we would do anything for a child.
I am the momma of 2 spoiled rotten dachshunds and I would be lost without their love!
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