Looking for a puppy

Well, hubby and I talked and we are now actively looking for a lab/mix puppy.   I found a rescue down in San Diego that has German Shepherd/Lab mix puppies and we've settled on looking at 3 of them.   Probably not until June 1, however, as I have some paper work to complete and I have to run out back and take photos of the yard and shade trees.   They also want photos of the house where the puppy will sleep.   You mean OUR BED?   Hmmmm....not quite sure how to do that yet. 

I'm excited over the prospect of getting a puppy, but also sad that Ripley is no longer with us.   I miss her a BUNCH.  I think even our indoor cat, Abby, misses her, but she hasn't come right out and said so.

I've washed off all of Ripley's sleeping pads..   She had 4 of them but preferred to sleep beside our bed or on the cool bathroom floor.   Remember, here in the desert, things do get warm, although we keep the house at 79 degrees this time of year.  We also have a HUGE mesquite tree in the front yard which shades the house and keeps it cool during the summer months.   We have a covered side patio, too, and 6' fences all the way around the yard.   I've raised 4 German Shepherds, 1 collie, and 1 black lab in this yard. Oh, and our son's Weimeraner for 2 years while he was in an apartment.   "Atticus" dug HUGE holes in the back yard whenever he could and sometimes I still forget they are there and fall into them!   He was SUCH a goofball!!!!   He was a good watchdog and would HOWL any time someone came to the door! 

My garden is still going.   The hollyhocks have been impressive this year.  I go out about once a week now and pull off the seeds.   I'm going to keep them for next fall and even plant some out front.   They grow nicely with the sunflowers.

Well, that's it for now...life does go on.  The last 3 weeks (since Ripley's death) haven't been easy.  I still cry most days and I miss her a lot.   She was my buddy, companion, and best friend.

~~Cheryl Ann~~
P.S. Here's a peek at one of the puppies we are looking at (see photo below) She's a lab/German Shepherd mix.   Don't you just want to smooch that cute face?

Ripley 2007 - May 5, 2018

My black lab Ripley has passed the Rainbow Bridge.   We called a vet to come out to our house yesterday to put her to sleep.   We think she had a stroke a week ago and she was sleeping 23 hours a day and was extremely lethargic.  She had trouble getting up from the floor.   It was time.

As you know, this is NEVER easy.   I've lost 3 good horses and now my black lab.  She would have been 11 September 1 this year.  She was my companion.  It's strange how dogs seem to understand what we are saying.   She would perk up in the morning when I said, "Let's go feed the birds!"...she would bound outside with me.   Lately, however, she wouldn't even join me.  It wasn't fair to keep her alive any longer.

So, hubby and I talked last night.   I've always had a dog in my life, but we are going to take a break this summer and get a puppy (a MUTT) in August.  We have a completely fenced yard, actually with part of the yard as a dog area.  And, like I said, I've always had a dog.  One of my first memories is me sitting on the floor next to a cabinet in the kitchen with my parents' Cocker spaniel and sharing dog biscuits with her.   We've had 4 purebred German Shepherds and 2 collies who were a brother and sister.  We kept the male and gave the female to my grandparents in their later years and Heather spent many years keeping them safe and giving them some company.  Our own children would hold onto the collie's fur and toddle around the side patio.

So, for now, I will dwell in my memories of Ripley.   I got her free up at the Anza swap meet  nearly 11 years ago.   There were 4 puppies in a dog cage...2 black labs and 2 shepherd types, all siblilngs.  I picked her up and never put her down.  She came home with me that morning.

She COULD be a brat.   She always got into our trash until we humans learned that we couldn't leave her alone in the house when there was trash in the can!   She had a SUPER nose!   And, she was SMART!   I honestly think she was smarter than a couple of our shepherds.     She LOVED people, but wouldn't let another dog near me.   She was always fine at the vet's office, something that 2 of our shepherds hated.  And, she was fine around the grandkids.

We will all miss Ripley.   "Baby Doll"

Here she is in my garden out back last month. 

Miss Ripley among the sunflowers...so silly...