Meet Crash!

Well, I will let you know up front, I am not a dog person. I am not a cat person. I am not really a "pet" person in general. Yet, here we are with a new addition to our family.

Meet Crash, our new dog. He is a lab/beagle mix and just over a year old. I think he is a nice looking dog.

Like I said, I am not a pet person let alone a dog person. It goes against my nature. I am a bit of a neat freak. I like a clean house. Having animals, well, just doesn't usually mix. Not that it can't be done. Just takes a lot more effort.

So, why do we have Crash if we aren't so into animals? Well, Wyatt is the reason. A few years ago he saw me get bit by a friends German Shepard. It was one of those freak accidents, but I had to get eight stitches and wear a bandage for over a week. It traumatized him a bit. Ever since he has been terrified of dogs. Big, tall, short, fat it doesn't matter. He freak-outs at the sight of a dog. Smaller dogs are better. He is skittish, but gets used to them faster. Big dogs, well, he can get used to them if around them long enough, but if they start barking or playing, all bets are off. To be perfectly honest, I too am more cautious around dogs.

In effort to counter his fear and eliminate it we decided it would be best to get a dog of our own. We thought that maybe by Wyatt learning to care for it and learn and understand a dogs behavior from a more personal perspective it will help him get over his fear.

A little over a week ago our friends posted online a picture of a dog that they were hoping to find a home for. I commented, thinking it would be good for us, but we should have a bigger house first before we get a dog. Then we began to pray and think about it. Asked a ton of questions. Finally, we decided. Yes. We will do it. We will do it for Wyatt.

Already in the first three hours our lives have changed. He has peed inside 6 times. Hair all over the rug. And little paw prints all over the hardwood floor. Nick has taken him out numerous times to get him to eliminate outside rather than inside, and he does go. I think it is a simple case of nervous bladder. Hopefully soon, real soon, he will get over that.

Wyatt has had a noticeable change. He is walking around comfortably, talking to Crash, petting him. Crash doesn't seem to ever bark, so that could change things after Wyatt hears that, but really so far we are doing good.

We have taken up the rug and put it away. I don't need pee on it. I don't know how we'll keep the couch from sliding all over the place, but hey, we'll figure it out. It still doesn't seem real to me. But if we have more "accidents" I'm sure the realness will set in rather quickly.

I hope this makes a big difference for Wyatt. I don't want him to be afraid of dogs his whole life. Well, here we go, we are officially dog owners!