In Which I Pick Out A Puppy......

We were up and out the door at 8am this morning so that we could make the 3 hour drive to the breeder's home before lunch. As the miles clicked away I found myself getting excited and then nervous with anticipation. Everything I have read and researched was circling around in my mind as if my random thoughts were playing tag with each other in a jumbled taunting sort of way.

I've never had a puppy this young before. Will I do things right?

Do I really want to use the crate?

Do I want to breed him later on or get things taken care of early on?

Did I buy the right food?

Do I have enough toys?

On and on it went until we pulled into her driveway. Then my mind went blank. There were 4 puppies in the cage begging to be held and given attention. One of them was a girl and she was sold already. The other three were boys and all were available for my picking. Me....the person who has always had dogs since before I could walk and has done all the proper 'research' said out loud, "Oh my I don't know what to do. How do I pick one?"

Sybil, the puppy breeder, just smiled at me and said, "hold this one first and see what happens." It seems that the first one she put into my arms did the deciding for me. He flattened himself out on my chest, wrapped his little paws around my neck, and nuzzled his head into my ear. Then he leaned back and with both paws on each side of my cheeks, he held my head in place while giving me proper hello kisses.

I tried to take turns holding the other two. Hubby really liked the runt and so I tried to hold him a few times to see if 'anything special' would grab me but in the end my Romeo won out. Hubby graciously let me make the decision and told me it was completely my choice.

Officially, Kekoa will be 9 weeks old on Monday. Sybil said he was a whopping 8 oz. at birth and one of 8 babies to be born in this litter.

River Poet asked me to explain a bit about the Westie breed and why I chose him.

West Highland White Terriers originally came about when the Cairn Terriers would whelp white pups. It is said that back in the 1800's that Colonel Edward Donald Malcolm was responsible for bringing the breed about for aiding in his hunting preferences. Apparently one day as he was hunting foxes, he mistook his prized reddish brown hunting dog for a fox and shot him by accident. The Colonel then decided that having a hunting dog that was a striking color difference would be helpful in avoiding tragedy.

The above information is legend sprinkled with truth. Now for some real facts.....

Westies are a hardy and energetic breed. They stand roughly 11 inches at the shoulders and weigh between 16 and 20 pounds in adulthood. They love to go walking and hiking without being typically dainty like more smaller breed dogs. Their stamina lasts well into their senior years and it is not uncommon to find a 16 year old Westie who still enjoys a good hike. At the same time, they are very versatile and are just as happy in a smaller environment like an apartment as long as they get to expend a bit of energy every now and again.

Westies are known for being very intelligent and eager to please so it makes training very easy. You will often see Westies as circus type show dogs because of the tricks they can learn and their obvious cuteness factor.

Also unlike most small breed dogs, Westies love all people and enjoy the whole family instead of choosing to love only one person and ignoring the rest of the home. Another perk is that while many small dogs tend to be yappers, the Westie will listen and stop when trained correctly.

The Westie coat is soft and coarse. Because of this they do not have the typical doggie type smell as they age and their coats repel dirt. This also makes them a great pet for people with allergies because their shedding and dander is very minimal.

Wow I guess I really did do my homework huh?

Here is a short 30 second video clip I took with my cell phone of Kekoa....because watching little pups trip around is just too cute.

Enjoy!

(I am reading my post over again right now and it sounds like I might be slamming other little type dogs. Really that isn't the case. They are cute in their own right too and if you have a little dog I know you are just as happy as can be.)