Gretchen

After 2 1/2 years of not having a dog we got a new one yesterday. Eric has been pleased with not having a dog, and I haven't minded it terribly, until the last 8-9 months or so. Ever since Jaylie has been potty trained and talking and behaving like a little girl and not a baby any more, I have been ready to have another dog. Because I have a husband who loves me very much, even if he doesn't love dogs, he said that it was OK to get one a couple of months ago. So, I've been hunting. I decided on a Basset for the temperament and so far, it hasn't been wrong. Gretchen is so laid back. She's barked about 3 times since we've had her and that was at her own reflection in the mirror and at a stuffed horse in Jaylie's room. The kids love her. They are all at good ages to enjoy her without me having to worry too terribly much about someone getting hurt. We got her at the Humane Society and we're estimating she's just a little over 1 year old. She's not done anything at all that is unpleasant or negative. I hope she is a quick learner of the rules in our house. She is quite the lover and snuggler so we really don't think she has been mistreated by people which is great.

Here's a picture of the first time we met.

I have wanted a basset hound since I was about 13 years old. I had a poster in my room of about 8 or9 basset puppies having their ears blown around by a fan that I thought was so cute. We always had dachshunds growing up and that's what Jasper was--he was our first dog (only dog) as a couple. We got him as a puppy after we had been married about a year. When moved here, we found another home for him where he would be paid more attention to. We also didn't have a fence here and with a 6 month old I didn't want to think of taking him out on a leash with Jaylie on my hip all the time. Our house is on a fairly busy corner lot and so just letting him out alone would have been out of the question. We built a fence last March and so now I have that and a 3 year old instead of a baby. We're all set.

Gretchen is fully grown and weighs about 25#. She is pretty skinny and will hopefully be putting on some weight so that I can't see all her ribs. When she walks with her nose to the ground she trips over her ears which I think is adorable. She has massive feet that sit kind of in a V shape when she's sitting down. So far, she is just a joy. I'm sure I'll post more about her as time goes by but for now, the score has been evened out at our house: 3 boys and 3 girls!

Have a great week
D