Well Bruce finally picked up our new dog on Saturday. Charlie's much tinier than he looked in the Nest puppy cam - right now a lot more hair than meat on his bones. He's a very people-oriented dog - isn't shy at all. He probably would have gone home with anyone.
Bruce flew to North Carolina and the breeder met him at the airport (sounds like an expensive adventure, but it actually saved us a thousand bucks from having the dog nanny transport him.
The breeder brought along Charlie's dad-dog so he could say good-bye. Charlie will probably be that size when he's full-grown. The breeder had to help Bruce put Charlie into his puppy carrier (a lot wigglier than stuffing some travel clothes into a duffle bag). As soon as Bruce got up to airport security, though, they made him take Charlie out of the bag and hand-carry him through the scanner. When he got to the other side, Charlie decided he'd had enough of the puppy bag and he spread-eagled himself across the opening. Bruce had a devil of a time getting him zipped back in.
I did the drop-off and pickup at the airport. The flight to Charlotte left at 5am, and they didn't get back home until after 8pm - almost past my bedtime (that's why I look so tired). Luckily, Charlie was tired, too, so we all 3 went to bed.
The next day Charlie helped Bruce with some yard projects. Having a yard full of mulch and rock (no grass) doesn't seem to faze him. Even I have trouble walking barefoot across the gravel, but Charlie doesn't seem to. He also seems to know how to climb up steps already, so until he gets a little bigger, we only have to carry him down the stairs.
But I think Bruce wore him out. When I sat down on the floor to play with Charlie, he crawled behind me and promptly fell asleep. He seems to like enclosed spaces, probably because his brother and sisters were always using him for a pillow.
Today he had to go to the vet for a puppy check. He doesn't look happy in this photo, but he actually was kissing the vet all over (a young girl). He was really happy with her when she said I should increase the amount of food we were giving him at each meal. He does love his puppy chow.
