The Day We Brought You Home (June 22, 2008)

Dear Waldo,

The day we brought you home was an exciting day for Mommy. She had been talking about getting a big puppy like you for a while, but Daddy wasn't too happy about it. Then Mommy and Daddy struck a deal: if he got a motorcycle, Mommy would get a dog. Mommy knew she wanted a BIG dog, like her friend Zander at house church. He is a brindle Dane and such a good boy. Mommy started looking for ideas on Craigslist, and she saw an ad for 2 merle Dane babies.

It was a very sad story. Your furmommy died from a stomach disease when you were only 2 days old. I know you never met her. The lady who owned your furmommy was not a very good lady, and she gave you away before you knew what was happening! Your adopted mommy took care of you and fed you from a bottle. She wasn't your forever mommy, though. She already had 2 Danes of her own and she lived on a big farm that needed a lot of work. It was hard for her to take care of you and your brother Archie. She was happy when Mommy called to ask about you. She said she had started calling you Waldo because you liked to run around her farm and chase the cats, and she could never find you. She said you liked to play with your brother, but you were kind of shy.

When I went to see you for the first time, I loved you and your brother. Daddy and I went together, even though he wasn't very happy to be getting another dog--especially one that would be as big as you! But Daddy picked you out. He said you looked like a good-looking dog. Mommy agreed.

When Mommy went to pick you up, she brought her sister Ashley. Mommy knew that she would need some help with such a big puppy. You weren't very happy to get in the car, and when you got in, you just laid down on the towels.

You were very smelly. Looking back, Mommy thinks that the lady who raised you didn't take care of you very well. You were left outside all the time, so you had lots of bites and you smelled bad. You also didn't have any boundaries, which is why you had so many problems peeing in the house. But Mommy saw past all of that, because that's what Mommies do. When we got home, we took you right to the bathtub. You did not like that first bath at all! You were like a bucking bronco--another evidence that you had never been washed before. But soon you settled down a little bit with some help from some treats.

After your bath, you were understandably nervous. This was a very scary day for you! We took you outside to explore the backyard, and you liked to flop down in the grass. You had trouble with the stairs (isn't that hard to imagine now?), but your big brother was always next to you to help you.


Gus was always such a good big brother. He was very gentle with you, and helped you play with your toys and showed you how to sit. You were very small next to him, but we knew you would grow past him soon enough.


You spent a lot of the day laying around, just taking in the new surroundings. Daddy and I welcomed you gently into our new family. You went to sleep in your new cage unwillingly at first, but now you go in like a pro.


We've said many times that you were not as easy as Gus. You had Mommy very worried that she had made a bad decision. But now we can't imagine this family without our big, dopey boy. You've had your ups and downs, but we love you so much. Oh--and Gus loves you, too.

Love,
Mom