RENEGADE!

OK, here is the story!  Brendan and I were talking about Molly and how anxious she gets when we leave her home.  We both had heard from several people that if a dog has separation anxiety it can help them to have a friend.  So, we talked it over.  We talked dogs, cats, fish, you name it, we talked it.  We talked about the different responsibilities of each pet and after much debate we settled on fish...(What? Fish? How in the world would fish help Molly?)  

We went to PetSmart to go pick out some fish..yes, seriously.  We couldn't decide on any, and almost simultaneously we looked at each other and said "This is not going to help Molly!" (We finally came to our senses)  Right next to the fish was about 10 cats, poor cats..they had to be next to the fish!  Luckily, they couldn't see that they were right next to a thousand yummy treats!  We went in the cat room and were able to play with them all.  There was one particular cat that we both really liked!  We thought, well hey, cats are easily trained and Molly loves her cat cousin Mr. Brooks, so maybe this would work!  After about 45 minutes playing with Casper the cat...or like we called him, Garfield..we realized we were both WAY too allergic.  Brendan was sneezing and I was breaking out in a rash and our eyes were watering...needless to say, we realized we were not meant to be cat people.  

We then left PetSmart.  We both realized we really wanted a dog, and that we were just being absolutely CRAZY thinking about fish or a cat.  We are not cat people!  Not that there is anything wrong with cat people...especially after we know Mr. Brooks and then met Casper, we can totally see how people can become cat crazy.  But, we were never as excited about a cat or fish as we were when we really started discussing if we could get a new dog.  We carefully planned out all of the ins and outs of having a new puppy, and decided we could "abso-posit-utley" get a new dog.  We wanted to rescue a dog this time and really truly save an animal.  

So, as we headed to Galveston the next day, we toyed with the idea of stopping at the Galveston Humane Society.  Brendan warned, "You know this is a kill shelter, right? We may leave being really sad."  And I said "I understand.  But, not matter what, we aren't going home with any new animal without us bringing Molly to meet it.  So, either way, we can't take any new fur baby home today."  That made both of us feel better.  Also, since this was the Saturday before Memorial Day, we were going to have two days before the shelter was open again.  Giving us plenty of time to marinate with the idea, if we did indeed see a pup that just had to be ours. 

Turns out, on that Saturday afternoon, Brendan spotted a little mutt that he thought we should play with.  As soon as we got into the play room with her, she walked right up onto Brendan's lap and just wanted some love.  We played with her for about 45 minutes.  We were so excited and nervous at the same time.  We knew we had to leave her that day and come back with Princess Molly to see if we could make this puppy a Murphy.  The shelter allowed us to put her on hold until the end of the day on Tuesday.  We spent the next two days puppy proofing and creating a home for a puppy.  We were anxious and excited...so much pressure was on little Molly! 

 So, after creating a nice warm welcoming home (the bathroom is now hers...), Tuesday two of my study buddies (and now close friends) accompanied me to the shelter with Molly.  Brendan had to work and wouldn't have made it to the island before the shelter closed.  The three of us and two dogs spent well over an hour together at the shelter.  Molly wasn't extremely welcoming, but she was tolerating the puppy the best she knew how and the puppy would listen if Molly tried to put her in her place.   Basically, the interaction was better than I thought it would be, and Brendan trusted me to make the right decision...so, the adoption took place!  Now we have a new fur baby, Renegade (named after the FSU mascot, of course!).  She has already thrown some challenges our way, but we knew going into this it wouldn't be easy!  We love her already and can't wait until Molly and Renegade become best friends :)  

That's all for now, time to redo a quiz (technology got me today...as I submitted a 40 minute quiz there was an error and the entire thing had to be reset...just got an email from my professor saying it's ready for me to attempt again)  and do a little suture practice and studying!  Cheryl and Joe are coming into town tonight for the weekend and I am going to try my best to not have too much school work to do! It's so exciting to have family here!!! More updates to come later!