New Puppy In Less Than 24 Hours!

24 hours from now, I'll be driving home in Phoenix with my new puppy. Bringing home a new puppy is still one of the most exciting things that can possibly happen in my world! Not only are they adorable, but they always have so much potential. They haven't done anything "wrong" yet, and they are practically blank slates. (Though not totally -- if they have been well-socialized, like this puppy has been and Guide Dog puppies always are and the foster mini-Aussies most definitely were NOT, they will be wired to think that people are great and new experiences are fun.) It's so easy to think that maybe THIS will be the puppy that grows up to never, not ever, pull on her leash, or the one that sleeps soundly all night long and doesn't wake up till the alarm goes off (I'm still waiting for that one, though I've heard they exist), or the one that has the temperament to be a therapy dog (not likely, considering my breed of choice), or the one that has a perfect trained retrieve, or... And I purposely try not to think of things like, maybe this one will have fear of thunderstorms, or be impossible to house train, or chew up the beautiful dining room table that belonged to Tim's grandmother, or will be not easily motivated by food or toys so will be more challenging to train. For a few days anyway, the new puppy gets to be just perfect and adorable and snuggly. I mean, look at this:

Obviously she is adorable, especially if you like funny pink noses with black spots. (I do, but I understand that it's an acquired taste. I used to think all merles were ugly, but somehow my feelings changed over time.)

And here she is, with her littermates. She's the one in the center looking at the camera with her big blue eyes:

The only problem is that I'm not sure I'm getting the right puppy. I don't know how that can be, since I have been waiting for a red merle female for more than 6 months now. (When the breeder had her last litter, in July of last year, I actually had a red merle female reserved out of that litter, and I changed my mind because I wasn't sure how Tim REALLY felt about lots of dogs, and didn't want to scare him away by adding a puppy to a house that already had two dogs. Now I know that he really does like a pack of dogs -- I mean, just the fact that he didn't flinch at the thought of two puppies in the house at the same time was pretty telling -- so feel like it's safe to bring home my long-awaited red merle female Aussie.) I had this one reserved practically from the moment she popped out of the womb. Her parents are from very good breeding -- healthy, multi-talented, titled in many different disciplines, from Aussie Hall of Fame kennels -- and they are raised in a healthy, stimulating environment, so it would be really hard to go wrong with a puppy from this litter. But I'm still not sure.

When I visited the puppies a few weeks ago, I saw my puppy and wasn't all that excited. She was cute and all, like all the other puppies, but she wasn't all that interested in me. (To be fair, most of the other ones weren't interested in me either. At five weeks, they have the attention span of gnats and are mostly interested in eating dirt, playing with each other, peeing, and pooping.) But I saw one of the red tricolor males and instantly liked him better. For one thing, he looked at me and really looked, like he actually found me interesting. I don't take that as a personal compliment, but more as a sign that he is very interested in people, even at that young age. Then he came over and put his feet up on me. Just for a second, and then he wandered off with the other puppies, but he at least checked in, which the other puppies didn't do. Also, he is beautiful. He is a very dark red, more like liver than red, which makes his tan points stand out very bright, and he has a lot of white. Here he is:

Most of the other puppies in the litter have been sold, but the three red tri boys are still available. The breeder said it's always hardest to sell the male tris, whether they're black or red. (I don't know why -- I wanted a merle this time, but still love the tris and think they are the most classic-looking.) She's dropped the price to $350 for those three boys, which makes them much cheaper than the puppy I'm getting. So I am really undecided. I have wanted a female merle forever, and am not sure why I like this one so much when he is NOT a female merle.

I emailed the breeder a week or so ago and asked her about my puppy's personality. She was honest and said that she is not the most confident puppy, but that she is very interested in people once she knows them. (She also said that she takes a while to warm up to individual people. She got attached to the breeder's mother because the litter spent their first month at the mother's house, and then when they were transferred over to the puppy room in the breeder's house, she took a while to decide she liked the breeder.) I am all right with both of those things -- confidence can be built with training, and I like dogs that are picky about who they like. (And after Zsiga, I am ready for a puppy that is a little more needy and less outgoing.) I really think her temperament will be fine for what I want to do with her, but I still keep wanting to bring home the boy instead.

I am really hoping he is sold when I go to pick up my puppy tomorrow. Then I won't have to make everything complicated and decide which one I want. On a side note, if anyone else wants a really nice Aussie puppy for $350, let me know and I can pick him up for you!