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The following Saturday, Brent opened the door when he saw his mother pull into the driveway. He’d been watching for her and knew she’d have her hands full.
He’d gone out and bought everything he thought he’d need. A bed, bowls, collar, harness, two different kinds of leashes, toys, treats, dry food, wet food, and these things called piddle pads. He wasn’t so sure he wanted to get the dog thinking it could go to the bathroom in the house but knew it’d be easier to clean up a mess. If he could get the dog to even go on them.
He walked down the front porch steps to help his mother and saw his new puppy. Fawn colored, black face, white paws, floppy ears, a squished nose, and the tongue hanging out while it hopped around his mother’s sneakers.
“That’s a puppy?” was the first thing he asked. He was picturing something he could put in his palms.
“Of course it is,” his mother said.
He crouched down and the dog ran to him, jumping up and licking his face. “I was expecting something smaller.”
“Both of the parents of this little one were over seventy pounds. This is the runt, as I said. The others in the litter are about thirteen pounds. This one is ten.”
It looked bigger than a ten-pound baby to him, but then he realized he wasn’t sure how big a ten-pound baby was.
“Damn,” he said.
“Let me get the rest of her things from the back. You might want to walk her around and see if she has to go to the bathroom again. I was thrilled she didn’t have an accident in the car, but she was all over me while I drove.”
“Why not put her in the back?” he asked.
His mother laughed. “She started out back there and decided she was lonely. I couldn’t very well pull over and put her in the back when she hopped in the front. She’d keep doing it.”
Something he’d have to figure out too. He had an appointment with the vet this week for shots and everything else the dog would need.
He took the leash from his mother and let the puppy walk around the front lawn until she squatted and peed, then looked at him. “What does she want me to do?”
“Praise her maybe?” his mother said. “I read that boxers live to get approval. They’d do cartwheels for their owners if they could. They are bright and playful creatures. I think you need both in your life.”
He laughed. “I’m plenty bright.”
His mother smirked. “Not playful.”
He looked down and saw the puppy on its back, its thin legs in the air as it rolled around in somewhat of a wiggle, the damn tongue still hanging out the side of her mouth.
“Looks like I better learn to be,” he said.
His mother had a bag over her shoulder and a folder in her hand. “Here are all her papers. There is some food in the bag that the breeders were feeding her. Did you get what I told you to?”
“I did,” he said. He’d read that you shouldn’t change the food right away. “What are all the papers for?” It was a thick folder.
“She’s a purebred. You need to register her.”
“What? Why didn’t you tell me you were buying a purebred? Mom, that’s a lot of money. Let me pay for her.”
His mother laughed. “First off. No. This is my gift to you. Consider it a housewarming gift, but the truth is, you need this and if it brings you back to the son I used to know, it’s worth it and maybe a sibling to go with her.”
“God, no,” he said. “I’ll be lucky to handle this one.”
“And second of all, I work with Karen and she gave me a discount. Either way, she’s our gift to you.”
“Thank you,” he said. “I think I’m in over my head, but part of me thinks you are enjoying that fact too.”
“And then some,” she said, following him into the house.
He unclipped the leash, the puppy taking off and sniffing everything in its path. “When does she need to eat?” he asked.
“Karen said she feeds her a little in the morning, noon, and night. If she eats too much at once she’ll throw up. She’s a little piggy, so start out slow. She might not eat much for the first few days while she gets used to her new home.”
