Hello again. I'm popping in here because many of you know me from years of chat since Fraser was a pup. Then the sad months while tried to figure out what was wrong with his digestive system, tests, decline and finally, his last visit to the specialist vet in Vancouver. I thought you might be interested in an update.
It's been 7 months since Fraser died and I gave a long thought about whether I should have another dog in my life. Of course, without the company of lovely Fraser and the loss of routine as my day was lost without him, I decided I'd give it another try. Started by contacted local spaniel breeders to see if they had any adult dogs that needed a good home. Got kind responses and promises to look out for one, but nothing for immediate future. Then looked into lots of rescue sites to try to weed out the scams and poor practice organisations from reliable, responsible ones. But with the difficulty of living a ferry ride away from their locations was too much, and the unknowns that come with a rescue in terms of health and behaviour, I gave up that direction. Finally decided to get a pup even though I was hesitant at my advanced age and going through puppy phase again. I tipped over the edge when a breeder of multi-generational Australian Labradoodles I came to know quite well emailed to say there was a pup available, ready to go from a breeder in Alberta. She highly recommended the breeder there and they both belong to the various Australian Labradoodle organisations, do OFA testing and guarantee the health of their dogs, including the requirement to call them first if there was any reason I couldn't take care of the pup/dog any more so they could arrange a good home. So that was reassuring. I dearly love the cocker spaniel breed and still think them elegant and beautiful, but now I have a very cute Australian Labradoodle pup overwhelming my day with baby pup needs and housetraining, training etc. but also bringing back love and lots of smiles. They're bred to be service dogs, so initial breeds in the creation are spaniel, lab, poodle and Irish water spaniel, all dogs with people orientation and intelligence. New pup loves to please and already shows intelligence in picking up the basics quickly. Plus silky soft and cuddly. I think there's a forum here for other breeds, so I'll post over there. But three cheers for spaniels and their owners. They are the most wonderful dogs and I'm hoping the my little new pup will grow into an equally sweet and wonderful dog as Fraser was.
