I got a puppy! YAY!
Welcome to the family, Shelta. π
I waited 5 years... for the kids to be old enough, for me to be ready, and for the right dog to come along. The moment I saw her, I knew she was the one.
Shelta is a German Shepherd / Belgian Malinois mix: a companion, playmate, and protector.
She is SO smart! I've had her for 5 days and she already has a good start on leave it, touch, come, trade, sit, and potty commands. She's learning to walk on leash and settle in her crate. I've been ON IT with housetraining, and she's got that figured out already. Thank goodness.
I took a week to prepare the house, and got some fence panels for the back yard. At first, I only got 4 panels, but went right back for more.
I have two gates on order and am looking forward to making the yard a bit bigger for her. It's helping us rock house training.
I've always adopted rescues before. This is the first time I've gotten a dog from a breeder: The Ark Forest Reserve and Kennels. The breeder also happens to be a good friend of mine who has a ranch nearby. Heather breeds the most amazing German Shepherds, and I've adored several litters of pups without getting one. Self control, I tell ya.
And then Maggie (the mom) went into heat on a rare day that my friends were away and didn't have her separated from Suka (the dad). A happy accident produced a litter of dogs that would be smaller than Heather's usual German Shepherd pups.
And when I saw the black one with a patch of white on her chest, I knew she was for me.
Shelta's mama Maggie was a rescue that my friend Heather took in. She is such a great dog! I love how devoted she is to Heather. She's smart and sweet and small (compared to the pure bred GSDs) and lovely.
This is the first time I've had an animal where I know the mom and dad, know the people who raised her, and am able to bring her back to the ranch where she was born for playtime and walks.
With my kids, I knew I needed to start with a puppy this time, and set us all up for success from the get go. I love that we had a chance to spend time with the pup weeks before we took her home. We already have such a strong bond.
It's been 5 years since I had a dog, and I've missed having a K9 to hike with. I know Shelta will love hikes when she's big enough. I have a lot of socializing and training to do, but she's so smart, it'll be fun.
She's great with the kids and we're so happy to have her in our home.
Even the cats think all this new dog stuff is cool. π€£
We tried out a bunch of different names: Layla, Gemma, Anna, Emma, Bella... but Shelta was the only one that felt right.
Shelta is the name of the main character in a series of books I've written, and also a secret language of Celtic origin. (Kudos to @enginewitty for the idea.)
Falling Through the Weaving was released in early 2021 under my fantasy pen name, Leia Talon, and is the first novel of the character Shelta's adventures. I'm supposed to be getting the next book, Dragons in the Weaving, ready for publication, but I'm a little preoccupied with puppy training for the time being. I'll get to it. I will... Just not right now. π
Not a writer procrastinating. Nah. That never happens. π€£
It's a really good reason, though. Sorry for the delay to anyone waiting for the book. It'll be along soonish.
I'm tagging @naturalmedicine on this post, as animals bring such love into our lives. Dogs encourage us to unplug and get outside, to breathe fresh air, exercise, play, and cuddle.
The love I feel for this little fluff ball with sharp teeth is profound.
What about you? Do you have pets?
I'd love to see a photo in the comments if you do!
Peace @Katrina-Ariel / @LeiaTalon
All photos mine, except photos of Suka, Maggie, and the litter, courtesy of The Ark Forest Reserve and Kennel
Awww... you are having a PuppyMoon!!!
Don't you just love it?
It's time... to have a puppy!!
SHELTA... what a nice name. It fits!!!
Congratulations, @katrina-ariel,
and HAPPY PUPPYMOON!!!
Thank you so much! It is a puppymoon. π€£ What a great word!
Yeah... I essentially coined the word PuppyMoon for Honeymoon and Babymoon, haha π
It's when you are so smitten by your Puppy Love!!!
I love that cool word -- puppymoon! ππΆπ
You like that, huh!!!
I am forever in a PuppyMoon stage with my now 15 year old Yorkie!!!
@tipu curate
Upvoted π (Mana: 75/95) Liquid rewards.
Aw, how kind of you. Thank you!
DAWWWWW! Talk about cuteness overload! What a cutie! I already want to go visit just to roll around on the floor with her!
She's so cute, it's true. And when she's snuggly she's the sweetest. Other times she's sharky. We're working on that. I have multiple cuts on my hands for the effort. π€£
I'm in love with Shelta right alongside you! @katrina-ariel
And just look at her adorable litter mates! I'd love one for our Siberian husky!πΊ
Her parents are beautiful and handsome. GSD and Malinois are a very intelligent combination of breeds. I'm not surprised at how quickly she's learning. When you have young kids it's good idea to get a puppy from a breeder to raise alongside them and not any risks of unknowns and preconditions.
Enjoy her wonderful puppy breath and rub her belly for me!!!πΆπΎπ
Upvoted and curated
Aw, I will for sure rub her belly for you. And I love Huskies! They're such lovely dogs.
Yes, I knew going into it that I'd have to commit to a lot of training and giving her jobs. She's such a smart cookie! Hoping to set up an agility course in our yard next summer, and teach her to search. I'm grateful to have the support of my friend, Heather, also the breeder. After rescuing several dogs that came with issues to work through, it had to be a puppy with the kids.
Thank you for the curation and the sweet comment! π
Great looking puppy. Youβve got it all figured out. Sounds like a very good choice. Good luck
Thank you! I don't think I'd go so far to say I have it all figured out. lol! We're doing well, but I have a lot to learn, and so does Shelta. π
The rewards earned on this comment will go directly to the person sharing the post on Twitter as long as they are registered with @poshtoken. Sign up at https://hiveposh.com.
You received 1 token for posting in Ladies of Hive.
"We believe that you should be rewarded for the time and effort spent in creating articles. The goal is to encourage token holders to accumulate and hold LOH tokens over a long period of time."
Thank you!!! π
I am so SO happy that all is going so perfectly. You have wanted a dog for a long long time. The name suits her perfectly but then @Enginewitty is pretty smart when it comes to those kinds of things.....just don't tell him I said that cuz it will go to his brain....... which will expand and crack his head open and all those Doctor bills and such.........I do not want to be responsible for that.
It also makes me happy that you will now have protection when walking and home.
Thank You for sharing your newest family member with all of us. I can not wait to see glimpses into her life story.
Love You!!
ππ€£ππ€£ππ€£
HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
Thank you! Yes, I wanted a dog so bad for so long. Witty is good with words and ideas, it's true.
I'm glad I'll have her to watch my back on hikes and at home. There's bears out there.
Thank you for celebrating with me! Love you, too! π
She looks adorable! My childhood dog was a German Shepherd and I am very fond of them!
Have a great life with her :)
They're amazing dogs. Thank you so much!!!
And your beautiful post inspired me to make a new shooting for my dog :)
https://peakd.com/hive-194913/@fotostef/not-that-bad
You're a great photographer!
Thank you for the compliment :)
Shelta gonna be huge. No more competition for food and fed love all day every day! She is gorgeous. Glad your patience has paid off in letting the right soul find its way to you. I know she'll be happy to be part of the fam πππ€π
Thank you! She's so happy here. Little darling. She shouldn't be as big as a pure bred GSD, as her mom is quite small, only 30-40 lbs. Dad is bigger so Shelta will probably be around 50lbs when she's grown. But I guess we'll just have to wait and see! ππ€π
What an absolute doll this young puppy and a nice breeding combo there for sure! Welcome to the new best buddy and looking forward to seeing more post from this beauty
She's such a love, for sure. And I think the mix of breeds is wonderful, agree with you there. Thanks for the sweet comment!
Lovely puppy, @katrina-ariel.
Thank you! π
Ho Ho Ho! @katrina-ariel, one of your Hive friends wishes you a Merry Christmas and asked us to give you a new badge!
The HiveBuzz team wish you a Merry Christmas!
May you have good health, abundance and everlasting joy in your life.
To find out who wanted you to receive this special gift, click here!
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
Check out the last post from @hivebuzz:
Dear @katrina-ariel,
Do you mind supporting the HiveBuzz proposal for 2022 so our team can continue its work next year?
You can do it on Peakd, ecency,
https://peakd.com/me/proposals/199
We wish you a Happy New Year!