Our new shelter dog, Darla

Ever since we got our dog, Sage (red one on the left), we wanted to get her a doggie friend. But when she was about a year old we moved from our house to a townhouse. The townhouse was barely enough space for her (and no yard), so we put her doggie friend on hold for two years. Now that we've moved to a house on over 1/2 acre, we decided it was time to go shopping--doggie friend shopping.

Over the last few days I've spent an inordinate amount of time combing through local on-line classifieds and online lists for local animal shelters and rescues. For many reasons it was super important to get the right dog (the fact that we still have a toddler up at the top of the list). Many shelter dogs have issues from abuse or neglect, but just as many are great dogs that just need a loving family. I needed to find one of those dogs.

We hit the jack pot with Darla, a 4 year-old lab mix (we think she's mixed with a Rotti and something else that gives her a few little patches of white fur). I found her at the Utah Animal Adoption Center, and unless something really goes wrong when she comes home, she is going to be perfect. She's about the same size as Sage (medium), and her personality is all lab; mellow, gentle, slightly lazy (she sort-of chased the ball with Sage in the shelter's garden), very goofy, and very loving. My toddler loved all over her, and Darla was basking in it, pink tongue lolling out the side of her mouth. Like I said, all lab.

We can't bring her home until next week; she needs to be spayed, and they won't be able to do the surgery until next Wednesday (Boo!). Until then we'll gather all the new-doggie-friend necessities and accessories. My 6 year-old has already picked out her new collar: white leather with pastel, leather flowers with rhinestone centers. We'll see how long that collar lasts ;)