My Perfect Puppy – The Arrival of Lupe

This is a continuation of the previously published Dingo Tale post “How To Choose The Perfect Puppy“

On the evening of February 11, 2011, my spouse arrived home with the puppy I didn’t want.  I was still unhappy, and did not even go look at the puppy when I first heard it was here.  After a while, I did go take a brief look at it.  I had to admit that I really liked the looks of this puppy.  My spouse had named it Lupe.

Lupe was adorable – full of energy with bright hopeful eyes, an inquisitive black nose, ears with tips that flopped over just a bit, little freckled paws, and a curly tail.  She was friendly and wanted to lick me with her pink tongue.  Lupe looked like she would only grow to be a smallish medium-sized dog.  I liked the notion that she wouldn’t be too big or too small.  In fact, I liked everything about the puppy, but still spent only a few minutes with Lupe before retreating back upstairs.

The confrontation came later on that evening.  It was time for bed.  My spouse had locked Lupe in her transport cage for the night.  The cage was downstairs in the dark kitchen covered with a blanket.  I went to bed.  And then it began – the whimpering, pleading, begging, crying, sorrowful tiny voice of the lonely, scared 2-month old puppy.  Torn away for the first time ever just a few hours ago from her mother, siblings, and the cats with which she had lived outside enduring the cold winter ever since being born in December, Lupe was suddenly now confused, lost and alone.  Worst of all she was trapped, a prisoner abandoned and forgotten in a strange dark cage.

Soon I could not bear to hear Lupe crying.  I wanted to go get her out of that cage and let her sleep with us.  This was not permitted.  My spouse had been reading books by famous professional “dog whisperers”.  The cage was Lupe’s “den”.  She would soon learn to feel safe and secure alone there.  In the meantime, Lupe had to cry herself to sleep.  Apparently all dog whisperers understand this is just a part of normal best practices dog training.  If I didn’t believe it, I could have a look at the books myself.

I knew if I looked at those books, my spouse would be proven right.  I did not avail myself of the opportunity.  I am not a dog whisperer.  Something in me rebelled at being told a cage was the same thing as a safe, secure den.  I really didn’t care what the dog whisperers recommended.  Mentally I speculated that if I could throw the whole lot of dog whisperers in jail every night, there might be some revised opinions on how wonderful it all was, although I didn’t dare voice such sentiments.  But, right or wrong, I was going to set the sad puppy free!

And I did!  Perhaps it was an evil thing to do, but I abandoned my spouse for the night and spent it in another room with the happiest, most grateful, little puppy ever.  Lupe licked me 10,000 times.  Lupe was not sleepy.  It was a long night of puppy love, if ever there was one.  In one evening I had gone from a sullen, resentful new puppy owner to madly in love.  From now on, it was Lupe and me against the world!

The third post in this Dingo Tales series  is Guilty As Charged!

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