Her name is Ania, she’s 15 weeks old, she’s a Belgian Malinois and she’s from Poland. These are the facts, the rest is my perspective.
The “We” I speak of is my husband Michael, me, four dogs: George, 11; Catherine, 10; Lucy, 10; Molly 8, and Maggie (our cat) 12. Having a Belgian Malinois was my husband’s dream, I was happy with where we were.
My husband is an adventurer and always thinks outside of the box and most often I fight his ideas, at first. His ideas most often fluster me, as I’m the kind of person that likes things planned out, organized, tidy and inside the box, all of which a puppy is not. I have learned over the years, however, that when I step back and let him dream and research his ideas, I get caught up in the excitement and the adventure and start to look forward to what’s to come, while at the same time fearing the unknown and feeling the need to object. Through experience though, I have learned that each time I’ve allowed myself to go with the flow and follow his excitement and dreams, I have learned, grown and become a better person for it. So, we got a puppy!
As any dog owner knows, the stress of getting a puppy is overwhelming and seems unending. The interrupted sleep night after night, trying to keep up with the non-stop energy and the teaching of rules and boundaries and all the potty times outside tends to wear you out. Our schedules were already far too busy for a puppy; we had no free time or energy for anything more than what we already had. Being empty nesters, our lives were supposed to have gotten easier but nothing was further from the truth. We both have jobs, a house too large for us, four dogs, one cat, fourteen grandchildren and a love of travel. Our lives were full with no room for much else, I thought. But we got a puppy!
Ania is a stunningly beautiful puppy. Her round, black eyes light up her face which is a deep and almost shiny black and her ears, also black, stand up tall and straight on the top of her head except for the times she leans them both into each other which forms a triangle and makes her look like she’s wearing a hat. Her undercarriage, including the inside of her legs, is also the same deep black but the outside of her legs and the rest of her body is a mixture of cinnamon and tan with black thin lines of deep charcoal color lightly speckling her body and giving her coat a mixture of cinnamon, tan and black. Her tail is long and thick with the same tri-coloring with the black becoming more prominent as you go towards the end, with the last two inches being totally black.
She bursts out of her kennel each morning filled with energy and joy which spreads across her face as if each moment promises a new adventure. What a difference that would make in my day if I woke up that way each day. She’s smart, funny, gentle and extremely loving. Even when she’s scolded by one of us or one of the other dogs, she takes it in, steps away and then comes back just as happy and loving with no self-pity or bad feelings. She’s a ray of sunshine.
Nothing seems to get done anymore as having five dogs requires constant supervision. The dust is piling up on furniture, yard work is waiting and even the vacuum cleaner has dust on it, there’s just no time. Successfully getting housework done is on my list of “To Do”s, but because of Ania, it has moved further down that list. My priorities are beginning to change and I think that’s a good thing. Here we are only five weeks in with Ania and she’s already taught me so much.
There are moments I hate having a puppy in our life but in the next moment, I love it. She drives me crazy and fills my heart with joy. I come close to tears at times and then she makes me laugh. She’s a total annoyance yet a source of wisdom. She’s overwhelming and frustrating yet I’ve fallen in love with her and I’m looking forward to watching her grow up.
The senior dogs in our house are used to a quiet life of long naps, meals and long walks, yet are now learning to tolerate her non-stop energy, enjoying playtime with her and are working toward acceptance of her in their lives. We’re becoming a family; we got a puppy and we are blessed!