Pupdate

We've had the dogs for twelve days now, and I figured it was high time for an update.

The dogs, a basset hound named Colonel Buford T. Beauregard, CSA (yes, after the Civil War general...and yes, named by K!) and a beagle named Cosmo Brown (after Donald O'Connor's character in "Singin' In the Rain"), are fabulous.

It's been a rough first few weeks; I don't think K or I were mentally or physically prepared for the arrival of two dogs into our household ONE DAY after moving in to the new house. I think we sorely underestimated how closely they would need to be watched, and how much attention they would want from us. Dogs are certainly not cats.

Buford already came housetrained, and Cosmo, bless his heart, has given it his all. Twelve days later, I believe that he finally gets it, as he is running to the back door when he needs to go now, instead of me taking him outside forty times a day.

We are kennel training them as well, and Cosmo has taken to that better than Buford has. You have not overcome an obstacle in life until you have attempted to get the back-end of an obstinate basset hound into a kennel.

The dogs are best friends, and have serious separation anxiety issues, both in terms of being separated from one another, and from K and me. Buford follows us everywhere - into the kitchen, in the bathroom, on to the couch (after a bit of a struggle), and into the garage. Cosmo follows as well, but insists on following and biting your ankles or pants. It's a fun little game he likes to play. I think otherwise.

The cats have adjusted very well. We were completely worried about Fightin' Joe (Yes...named after the Civil War general "Fightin' Joe" Hooker...and yes, named by K...what household isn't complete without two Civil War general-named animals?!), since he is scrappy, to say the least. Joe is the cat that we see out and about the most. The dogs hardly seem interested in him. He has nabbed Cosmo once, after he got in his face and barked, but aside from that, there has been 'nary a skirmish. We rarely see Mouser, Fatty and Osanfay anymore. They spend most of their days lying in the cool darkness under the kitchen counters.

We took the dogs to the vet Saturday, after seeing them both have issues with diarrhea for a couple of days. After tests and other measures, it was determined that both have hookworms and roundworms, and Buford has heartworms.

I wrote a nastygram (OK, so it wasn't nasty at all...just an assertive expression of how dissatisfied I was with the rescue organization's failure to disclose the health of both dogs) to the rescue group, and we have since then started treatment for both dogs. Cosmo is too young to be tested (and treated) for heartworms, so we are crossing our fingers that he comes back clean in a couple of months, once he is old enough. It will be an expensive treatment, but there's no way we could NOT treat it. How can anyone ignore sad basset hound eyes?!

And speaking of basset hound characteristics: Buford has some of the worst gas I have ever smelled, and some of the slobberiest jowls I have ever seen. He always seems to feel the need to come put his head in my lap when he's finished drinking some water. At times like these, I am happy to be a student who can wear casual pants and jeans every day...I can't think of a single pair that hasn't been given the Buford Drool Treatment. He's also thrown his head back and given us several good howls already...Cosmo's howl we have yet to hear.

We have really been enjoying these dogs. They get us outside more, and they just have such distinct personalities and spirits. It sounds silly to say this after only two weeks, but I really couldn't imagine our lives without them. We have two fantastic, fantastic dogs.