We are excited to share with you great news: we have adopted a new puppy!
since we lost Tiki in November, we searched for the right companion for Barli. He is very gentle but Barli is a scary dog and is easily intimidated by other dogs… so we knew we had to find the right match.
We originally planned to adopt a larger dog or at least a larger puppy. After an unsuccessful adoption attempt, we found that Barli needed a companion that was smaller than him (even if the new dog was much older than Barli) and, at least for the first few weeks, would be submissive to Barli. so he doesn’t feel anxious.
The answer: a small puppy.
In Texas with our temperate winters, puppies are certainly born year-round – but the rush of Christmas makes finding a puppy harder than I anticipated. We searched Petfinder for shelter from Waco to Corpus Christi.
Then, last Friday, I saw this listing on the Texas Humane Heroes website:
Honestly, I’ve shied away from the list of Texas Humanitarian Heroes for a bit—because almost 15 years ago, that’s where we applied Tiki. I think it would be too depressing to visit the shelter again and remember that wonderful day.
But then I decided that maybe it wouldn’t hurt to just skim through and take a look.
And I fell in love.
“Scruffs” were part of a litter of seven puppies that were transferred to the Killeen shelter in early December at 3-4 weeks of age, then, two weeks later, sent to the Leander shelter. The shelter has no mother, so she is a mystery.
I watched the litter to see which one was a calmer but still outgoing puppy—and decided to visit the 7-pound blonde—who I guess reminded me of the blonde we were friends with. adopted over 14 years ago just a few yards away:
I spent about an hour playing with her and Facetiming John–and then the decision was made!
Soon she was on her way home! John leads Barli out of the yard on a leash to meet his new sister:
Barli’s first reaction was a little scared – marked by sudden drooling. However, after a day of getting to know her through her old barn, Barli quickly became close and they are now doing zooming moves around the yard. Barli was thrilled to see her new sister come home from her first vet visit yesterday – yes, she’s here to stay, Barli!
Everyone guesses what her breed mix is; her hair is super soft although it’s hard to tell how it will change as she gets older. Weighing 7 pounds at 8 weeks old, the shelter guessed her to be a medium-sized dog, probably somewhere between 40-50 pounds.
Her new name is Isla, a pleasant reminder of the years we wrote guidebooks about the islands–and of the many visits we hope to make with her and Barli to Mustang Island on Texas coast.
She still has about seven weeks left before her immunity kicks in and she can walk our trails (trails where many coyotes and foxes live together). , so there’s going to be a real danger before she finishes her shoot) but I’ll be communicating with her with a lot of visits to dog-friendly stores in the coming weeks.
I’m so glad I visited Texas Humane Heroes last Friday. It brought back so many memories of the day Tiki was adopted – and there really is no better way to honor her memory than to bring a new dog into our hearts. Isla’s has brought so much joy to our lives and to Barli’s.
Stay tuned for more about Isla!
