Derby Dog

Now time for an update... almost two weeks ago, Zach and I adopted a new puppy names Derby. We were already looking for a new dog not 4 days after Bailey's passing and we contacted at least 6 different people about dogs. The people we were contacting were all Craigslist posts and I don't think that they were very responsible about removing posts once that had rehomed the dogs. Anyway... by Tuesday, July 7th, I decided to try other avenues. I had looked on this website for Jack Russell Rescue in Dallas and I came across the pic below.

I emailed the contact on the post to ask whether this little pup was a male or female and she replied that Derby was a male. At the time, I immediately said no and moved on, but she said if I would fill out an application she would see what little girls were in the area for me. I filled out the application online and not 30 minutes later, the rep for Russell Rescue was contacting me. Almost as if she was a sales person, she was trying to find out what we wanted in a dog and also went to work right away. She gave me several options of little girl dogs in the area, but none of them were exactly what we wanted. We were really wanting a puppy so that we could train them up how we wanted and because they wouldn't have known anyone else besides us. So probably about 12pm that day, I called her back and said that we would like to meet Derby and see if he would be a good fit. From there, she proceeded to tell me that he would need some stitches removed from a recent surgery and that she would get that done that day if we were really interested. So she did and that night, she actually came to us to check out our house and make sure that we had a fit home for the dog. So she brought Derby over along with his mom Gracie and we got to make a decision about who we wanted. We stuck with Derby dog and we have now had him for almost two weeks.

Another puppy pic from the adoption agency

Our family pics from the adoption agency... as you can tell he's a little rambunctious. Just like we like him.

Not a real good pic, but this shows you my favorite quirks about Derby dog... he has one ear that stands up and the other stays down. They're supposed to both be down and if we massage the one that stands up while folded, it will stay down for 5 seconds. Once he shakes, it goes right back to standing up. He's cute that way!

A little about Derby dog that just must him irresistible... Derby's mom was brought to a shelter because she was a stray. They thought that she was just sick and so they were treating her, but it became apparent that there were also puppies involved in the mix. No one ever claimed her from the shelter, so Russell Rescue took her and they also cared for the puppies when they were born. Gracie had a litter of 8 puppies on January 30, 2009. The adoption agency named the litter after cities in England. So that's where the name come from... Zach and I thought it was cute and so it has stuck. Derby had already had all of his shots and had also been neutered when we got him and I just couldn't pass that up. That's a lot of money saved. He was not potty-trained, but he's learning real fast. He loves his toys... he has at least 5-6 toys out at a time. At one time I came home and there were actually 13 toys out of the basket we keep them in. He loves to cuddle at the end of day when he has played real hard. He seems to do well with other dogs, especially since he came from Russell Rescue where the lady was taking care of about 10 dogs at the time that we got him. He was the last pup left in his litter and we are lucky to have him.

All that to say... welcome to the Shirley family, Derby! (haha... Derby Shirley rhymes.)

TTFN

Bailey Shirley

Born Thanksgiving 2005 - Gone to Puppy Heaven June 28, 2009

Our sweet sweet Bailey girl passed away a week ago Sunday. I have waited a whole week to post anything because I just couldn't bring myself to say goodbye. So instead, I say Ta Ta for Now my little friend. I'm crying just writing this little tribute.

Our Bailey girl died in a tragic accident that we didn't even know could happen... we gathered up our stuff to go swimming last Sunday at my parents. Bailey came with us because that was her all time favorite thing to do. She jumped in the pool immediately. We swam for about and hour and 45 minutes and then we got her out and made her stay out of the water. She threw up several times which was nothing out of the ordinary because she drinks so much water while she's in the pool. Then she started getting very lethargic and by the time we left my parents house she couldn't hardly hold her head up. We left their house and got in the car and I was hysterical. Her heart was racing and she wasn't breathing well... we called the emergency clinic and rushed to get there, but she died in my arms on the way there. By the time we got there and she was checked out... she was already gone. They said that she suffered from hydrotoxicity, which is basically too much water intake in too little time. She couldn't get rid of all the water fast enough. I was still hysterical, crying at this point and then we had to go into the vet room to say goodbye. Very sad day... but I kept reminding myself that she died doing what she loved to do. The clinic packaged her up for us and we brought her home for burial in our backyard. My parents, who had met us up at the clinic for consoling, came back to the house for more consoling. My dad helped Zach dig the hole in the backyard along the path that she used to run. She was put in the hole in the dog coffin the vet gave us and she was buried with her first toy, a little puppy dog that had lost all its' stuffing. We cryed a lot that day and the next. I avoided being at the house by myself because I didn't have the company of Bailey. With every passing day though, it has gotten much better.

We'll miss you Bailey and we'll never forget the love that you gave us for the first three years of our marriage.

Side note: We can't handle the quietness in the house at all. We are already looking for another puppy and we may have one tonight if all goes well. Will keep you posted.