Meet Sophie-Anne!

On Saturday, Aug. 21, Robert and I decided it was time to take the plunge and adopt the puppy we had been talking about for a very long time. Through the course of that day, we visited several different locations within about a 50 mile radius of each other. The first place we went, we found no little puppies. The second place we went was closed. The third place we went didn't seem to exist (our GPS dropped us in a parking lot of a business center). The fourth place was extremely depressing and reminiscent of those ASPCA commercials. Finally, the fifth place, which we visited as a last ditch effort, proved to be the most wonderful place of all. The humane society was clean, air conditioned, well organized, and well managed. Our little Sophie-Anne (Annie) was in the puppy room, eagerly awaiting someone to love on her.

I knew she was our dog the moment I laid eyes on her.

Milton wasn't so sure that she was "the one"

when he first laid eyes on her....

When we adopted her, they estimated that she was three months old and guessed that she's an Australian shepherd mix. Now, for the record, I have always wanted an Aussie--they're good with children and cats, and they're extremely intelligent. Finding a sweet little Aussie baby was ideal for us.

See the line that's circled in this picture?

That's a tattoo to indicate right away that she's been spayed.

We took Annie to the vet the next Monday for a couple of reasons. Although the humane society had already spayed her, vaccinated her, dewormed her, microchipped her, and given her an overall wellness check, Annie was still feeling congested. I thought it would be wise for her to have one more wellness check. Our vet prescribed Clavamox (amoxicilin) for her because he surmised that she had tracheitis, which is essentially kennel cough. We're going back in two weeks for another wellness check and for a booster of the vaccinations that she was previously given. Our vet isn't so convinced that she's definitely an Australian shepherd. He guessed that she could be Australian cattle hound. I guess we'll see when she grows up!

Although I can see the resemblance to the Australian cattle hound,

that's a remarkably shepherd head, to me.

It's not featured in any of these photographs (but may well be in the future, as it could be a growing concern); Annie's tail was broken early in her life. Our vet does not suspect foul play, but rather believes it could have been a result of her mother gnawing off the sac a little too aggressively. Apparently this is fairly common. Annie's tail has grown into a strange little Q shape, which causes her to "spin" her tail when she wags it. Myself, I find it endearing and adorable. Unfortunately, it could cause a bit of a hygiene problem, since she can't lift the entire tail up off the ground when she's pottying. Our vet has said that we have an option here either to keep the tail as is or to amputate it. Because our vet is so conservative (meaning, he never recommends unnecessary tests or surgeries), I was a little surprised that he would be supportive of an amputation. This suggests to me that it might end up being the best move for us. We'll see. He said we have some time to think about it, since her tail does not cause her any discomfort or immediate risk.

Oh, and yes. Our little Annie was named for my favorite vampire of the

Sookie Stackhouse novels, Sophie-Anne Leclerq, queen of Louisiana.

Welcome to the family, little Annie girl! :) She has been a wonderful addition this week, and I am so looking forward to spending the rest of her life with her.