The Newest Member of the Family

We've been thinking about a dog for quite some time now and finally took the plunge! The girls have shown quite an interest in dogs lately, so we figured the time was right. And to be quite honest, the decision was also precipitated by a string of robberies in our neighborhood (we were victims for the second time in a year!), so we figured it might be nice to have a sort of free 'alarm system' in addition to a household/family companion... So, we ventured to the SPCA with the full intention of adopting a puppy that the girls could grow together with, but policies at the SPCA prohibit adopting puppies to households that have children under the age of 6... that meant we had to change our doggie mind-set from puppy to adult dog. This guy took our breath away the moment we saw him (those eyes!) and his personality was just wonderful. After a few obstacles and a good bit of hoop jumping (you would have thought we were adopting a human baby!), we came home with him just this evening.

Meet Klondike... a three year old German Shepherd/Siberian Husky mix - what a combination!




We didn't intend for him to be a full-on guard dog, but he's impressed us so far - he barked when the pizza guy came to deliver the pizza and he barked when Shane came back from the grocery store. Definitely made us aware of the presence of others outside, which is nice. But aside from alerting us, he hasn't made a peep.

He DOES seem to be quite the cat hunter, so we'll be working with him on his obsession with cats, especially since we just threw down a good $250 on the felines getting them up-to-date with their shots.

He knows how to sit and seems VERY aware of the word 'treat' - his ears perk up and he looks at you like he knows exactly what you mean. It's very obvious this guy was someone's pet, but the only thing we know about him is he was found wandering around downtown Raleigh and wound up at the SPCA.

The name Klondike seems to fit him perfectly - so we're keeping him as he was named at the SPCA. Such a sweet dog. As much as we had our hearts set on a cute, itty-bitty puppy, Klondike has already melted our hearts with his temperament and well-trained demeanor - such a sweet natured dog! Someone must be missing a pet, because I can't see how anyone would let him go.

As an aside, I do hope his gas is temporary, though... he's sleeping in the floor right next to me and is about to gas me out of the office! We might need some gas masks around here. :)