Our new puppy!

[geckodani]

What a little lover!!! I want to snuggle her!!!

 

[Steel]

Congrats on the new addition and it is wonderful that Rip is being a great manny.

 

[yssie]

i'm only as big as the remote control (this was a couple of weeks ago though, so she's bigger now)

OMG violet.... how adorable is that????


She looks like one of those stuffed chocolate animals

And how cute that they snuggle together!! I SO wish my parents' dog and cat would snuggle - they're only interested in disemboweling each other, sadly

 

[violet3]

thanks yessie! she's a handful, but we love her. She's been so good for the older dog - they play ALL the time, and they snuggle too - it's great! we were very worried they would be like your parents' dog and cat...the older dog is not so keen on puppies and we were worried he wouldn't do well with her, but he adores her. He follows her around, and checks on her all the time - it's just so sweet!

thankfully, it negates the puppy training irritations

 

[violet3]

thanks EB, prana, gecko, and Steal - she's pretty cute!!!!

 

[violet3]

Violet -- Rhonda's name cracks me up. I laugh every time I see it mentioned. I love it.

Zoe, I love it too - took some getting used too, but now when my husband yells "help me rhonda!" around the house, i can tell him to ask the dog for help

 

[catwalk82]

Congrats! Adding a second dog to your home is great! I have two rescue dogs (one a french bulldog) and the new girl is a shaggy grey terrier mix and those two LOVE each other.

Rhonda is absolutely precious! best wishes with all of the things that go with raising and training puppies!

 

[violet3]

Thought i'd put up some pics of Rhonda and Rip as she is growing -- she's getting bigger (and better thank god) every day. She and Rip are still inseparable...they're in LOVE.

As far as the crating goes, I have started kenneling them together at night, and she LOVES it!!! she doesn't say a word about it, while when she was alone, she would scream about it for an hour. she curls right up next to him and conks out! the sleeping has been so much better - with him there, she sleeps for at least 6 hours the only drawback is that i don't get to snuggle with Rip at night, but that's ok -- hopeful that eventually we'll all get to snuggle.

She's around 9 lbs now - the vet says she probably won't be more than 30 lbs., which i really like. Her personality is just AWESOME! she loves all humans and animals. While i had blocked out what puppies were like (and am sleep deprived) we are so happy for us, Rip, and for her, that we decided to go the second dog route.

Thanks everyone for your help in my decision making!!!

 

[violet3]

we helped decorate my dad's tree, all three of us!

 

[violet3]

snuggling

 

[Blackpaw]

Oh Violet they're such a cute pair and little Rhonda is the most ridiculously cute puppy ever

 

[Natylad]

OMG!!! Those are the cutest doggies i've ever seen in my life!!! They are amazing! Ohhh...i just want to hug them

 

[violet3]

Thanks Natylad and blackpaw!!!! she's pretty good for a puppy, but as i just took a quick catnap, she chewed the cover of my book a puppy is a puppy!

 

[zoebartlett]

Has Rhonda gotten a lot bigger since you first posted about her, Violet? She looks so big now!

 

[violet3]

Oh she is much bigger Zoe! She was about 3.5 lbs when we brought her home and teeeeeny tiiiiiiny - she's around 9 lbs now and it's been about 6 weeks. She eats a ton! She went from eating a 1/2 a cup a day total to 1 and 1/2 cups - and she's a great eater!!!!

I'm hopeful that she will end up around the 30 lb mark.

 

[decodelighted]

Oh Violet ... you're KILLING ME. Such cuties! My DH & I had almost almost almost decided against adding a pup this Xmas so as not to disrupt the delicate 2 cat/1 dog detente around here. But the SNUGGLING PICTURES! I wish I could read my pooch's mind to know if it would enrich her life more than disrupt it. (The cats would be cool no matter what.) Its certainly more work for us (mostly me) -- but I don't mind that. Its wondering/worrying how little widdle princess attention-sponge "T" (8 yrs) will react that's got me paralyzed.

 

[violet3]

Hi Deco!

saw your post in the other thread - i had THE EXACT same fear with Rip. Hubs has wanted another dog for years now, but i kept telling him - let's wait til Rip is 5 (my method of stalling, because i was worried like you). Well, he turned 5 this year and the hubby did not forget, as usual.

I saw that you found some shelter pups - this is the ONLY reason we ended up with a dog. I wouldn't have gone out and found a breeder, waited for a pup etc. But we had a chance to rescue one of 8 puppies who were going to be put to death by gassing They were local, and had been rescued by our groomer -- now, i know rhonda would have been adopted by someone else if we hadn't, but my husband felt really connected to these puppies.

So....we took the plunge!!! we took ripley to meet her where she lived so she wouldn't come in here and freak him out....and he was OK. didn't snap at her, which was a good sign (he doesn't like puppies). We got him home, and a few short hours later, he bopped her on the head in play and that was it - game on! they play all the time, but there are certainly minutes where he's older and doesn't feel like it and he tells her NO very firmly.

I've come to understand that animals will just work it out. Maybe they won't be BFF, but they'll adapt to each other (which is the most we were hoping for). How does the papillion do with other dogs in general?

 

[decodelighted]

Hi Deco!
I've come to understand that animals will just work it out. Maybe they won't be BFF, but they'll adapt to each other (which is the most we were hoping for). How does the papillion do with other dogs in general?

They look so happy together! And I just adore Rhonda's chocolate coloring. That would be a top choice for my pie-in-sky dreaming. Shallowly, it is just so nice with Rip's tri-coloring (which my T also has!). And those EYES. Gah. I'm gone. Anyhoo .... to your question:

T love all sizes, types of other dogs on a "get to know you" basis .... like the dog trails or a farmer's market. She's less thrilled with the one pup that comes to visit for longer periods at our house. She gets jealous. And that pup is pretty rambunctious. She's submissive with our cats most of the time, but will bark at them if they do something we don't like ... i.e. clawing sofas, fighting w/each other etc.

Her breeder told me that T was the smallest one out of all the Paps at her show breedin' biz -- but that T would always wiggle her way to the front and end up on her lap. That she would enjoy being an "only" pup. That she was a real "me me me" type. I'd say that's been pretty accurate. She does pout a bit when we give the cats special lap time. But I suspect that she'd be very sweet with a small puppy & curious about it & that it might enrich her life to have someone of her *type* to play with and snuggle with in addition to US. She does NOT snuggle with the cats. They yearn for her ... they reach out to touch her all the time & she growls & retreats. (They are double her size so some of its intimidation, also they are rough players -- so I don't blame her really!).

Eh, I'm sorry! I don't mean to hijack. That was a long answer!

 

[violet3]

Hijack away! i love hearing about people's animals - i hope i never live without animals. DH is allergic to cats, so we won't have them ever, but i like them. what kind of puppy are you considering?

Oh, Rip and Rhonda are in LOVE! Yeah, rhonda's coloring is spectacular - she was the only one. There were 8 babies in total - two black, two fawn, three blonde, and then Rhonda. She's a beautiful little girl.

Having said that, it was lucky that she was the cutest, because we would have taken her regardless. We went to play with the puppies, and i said...."show me the puppies that are the LEAST agressive, in your face, jumpy." My dog doesn't love puppies in general, or at least that has been the trend. When my sister and brother got their lab puppies, they were really agressive with him, and he DIDN'T like it. In Rhonda's litter, there were a few puppies that were very alpha already, and Rip needs a submissive (at least partially) pal.

We played with them all, and the groomer showed us the personality traits of all of them - Rhonda and a black fluffy one (pookie) were by far the most relaxed. Rhonda would check out the other dogs, but then leave them alone and check me out instead. She was funny and sweet, but mostly the best fit for Rip.

I think if you decide to do it, tell them about T and let them know what you would need for her. Once they live together for a while, they might come to love one and other and like the companionship. I know for mine, Rhonda is waaaaay more into Rip than she is to us, and Rip is less into us than he used to be, because he's always trying to see what she's doing/getting. it's hilarious!

i'll attach a picture of the whole litter so you can see just how crazy the difference is in coloring! obviously you can tell which one rhonda is....

 

[lulu66]

As far as the crating goes, I have started kenneling them together at night, and she LOVES it!!! she doesn't say a word about it, while when she was alone, she would scream about it for an hour. she curls right up next to him and conks out! the sleeping has been so much better - with him there, she sleeps for at least 6 hours the only drawback is that i don't get to snuggle with Rip at night, but that's ok -- hopeful that eventually we'll all get to snuggle.

this is what we had to do when we added our 2nd dog. only the hilarious thing is they were both already full grown 40-ish pound dogs & barely fit in each others' kennels together. after 3 years, they still like being crammed in the kennel together. (our dogs are nutty.) but ours definitely aren't in love. they've settled into a brother-sister relationship but that took a while. glad yours are getting along so well! and i love the new pics. thanks for sharing!! they are both such cutie-patooties!!

 

[Dandi]

AAHHHHHH she is so beautiful!! Those eyes are amazing! Your boy Rip is a total spunk too

 

[violet3]

I haven't posted in quite a while about Rip and Rhonda -- thought you might like some new pics. Rhonda is now about 10 months old and mostly full grown - she capped out around 30 lbs., which is perfect!!! She is a handful, but is also fairly well behaved for her age. I just know that when she is 2 or 3, she'll be such a great companion - she gets better every day.

As a result of Rhonda's arrival and his doggie weight watchers food plan, Rip has gone from 18.8 lbs to 15lbs. Lots of playing around here has helped him trim down, which makes us soooo excited (good for his heart long term).

Anyway, here are a few pics of us and our friend's golden retriever puppy and their playdate - we all had so much fun!

 

[violet3]

another from our playdate

 

[violet3]

rhonda, rip, and me for a photo op

 

[violet3]

all of us playing! Well, obviously i'm relaxing in a beach chair

 

[TooPatient]

Look at them! They look so happy together. I love the big grins at their play date!

 

[MsP]

lil brown cute puppy turned into a really beautiful dog!

 

[violet3]

thanks too patient and miss prudential!!!

 

[ckrickett]

that face

 

[yssie]

Wow.

The adorable little fuzzball turned into a svelte beauty - she's a heartbreaker