Pete The Pirate

We got a dog.  At this point it's been almost three months, but it's still a little crazy to me.  We've been saying "no dogs 'till no diapers" for quite a few years now, and we finally made it to the "no diapers" part!

Seth potty trained last fall, and the kids were pretty quick to start asking for a dog.  Carey and I decided that we wanted a dog that doesn't shed, is medium sized (not so small that the kids can easily carry it, but not so big it makes our house feel small), and is a rescue or someone's pet that they couldn't keep any more.  I was mostly looking on Craigslist, hoping for a standard poodle that someone had to let go.  I also checked the local animal shelters, but they were basically always 90% chihuahuas!

One day, when I was checking on Craigslist, I saw a cute dog named "Pictor Galaxy" that was in a foster home through a rescue organization in San Fransisco.  He was a schnauzer mix and medium size and really cute, so we made a date to go up and meet him.  When we went to meet him, I made the kids wear all black, and any fleece that they had, because I really wanted to make sure he didn't shed (schnauzers don't, but we didn't know about the "mix" part)!  Anyway, he was a keeper, so we took him home and renamed him Pete the Pirate.

When he first came home, he was kind of shut down.  He just stayed in his bed, not really interested in treats or toys.  It was three days before I heard him bark.  After about a week, though, he was used to us and his new home and now is a super happy puppy.  We just finished training (with THE BEST TRAINER) and he's a great, smart, sweet puppy. 

We all love Pete.  The kids will tell you that he really is a pirate, because he loves to steal their stuffed animals and shoes!

This is when we first meet Pete!