Day 1: Augustus Arrives Home

The day begins
I've been wanting a dog for a couple years and just haven't been in a place to have one. They're great companions, and there is something gratifying about the selflessness of caring for something other than yourself.

I went to the Humane Society on Saturday to look at dogs. I didn't expect to see a schnauzer - they get snapped up quickly - but they actually had one. Somebody had an adoption pending until 4:00 and the Humane Society stops accepting adoptions at 3:30. The people there suggested I come back at that time to see if the dog was still available, and indicated that if nobody picked him up by 4:00 he'd be available but that I'd have to submit my application the next day.

I went back at 3:30 to see if the dog had been adopted and it hadn't, but I had to wait until 12:00 the next day. I went, was first in line, but the dog had already been adopted by the people who had him on hold for the prior day.

I guess to the Humane Society, 4:00 means "until the next day". Grr.

Criteria
I think the Schnauzer breed is one of the best matches for me. My friends know I'm a dog guy. I think giving mouth-to-mouth to a Dachsund immediately qualifies you. I think I'm able to understand dog thinking. People thinking still escapes me.

My little buddy is Maximus. He's my parent's dog in title, but Max thinks of me as a protector. I helped train him, have watched him while the parents were out for weeks, and he camps out with me anytime I'm over at their place. Max is a classic Mini Schnauzer.

Schnauzers don't shed, are extremely intelligent, and are very loyal. Max was potty trained in two days, knows all 30 of his toys by name, and I can walk him without a leash.

The intelligence can be a challenge. They figure out how things work, then break them. They must be within eyesight of you at all times or they'll cry. They're very high-energy, high-maintenance dogs with a little bit of attitude and independence. You don't get a schnauzer if you don't want to spend a lot of time with your dog, and definitely not if you're not strong-willed.

My selection items for my pup:
1. Must be a Schnauzer.
2. Must be able to play with other dogs. Will be a playmate to Max.
3. Male, and gotta have a little bit of attitude. I'm not for the quiet, gentle, sleep all day dog.

"Everything happens for a reason."
I went to Tully's. It can be argued whether it's a puppy mill or a broker for breeders. They don't breed, but take pets from breeders around the region. An old lady with a cigarette dangling from her mouth takes care of the puppy's. They may not be a puppy mill, but they certainly could treat the dogs better.

I walk in to the kennel room and it was the saddest sight. No sunlight at all. It's a room filled with 30 pens with puppies in it, and you know they didn't get walked or played with much. They're confined to a 3' x 3' pen for most of the day. It's loud and smells like urine. Some dogs have pen companions, but others are alone for the entire day.

At the very front of this room is a pen with a single schnauzer. He was about 10 weeks old. I stopped any played with him a little bit, and then took him out and played with him in the play area. He was happy for attention, but it was more than that, he enjoyed interacting and playing with me. You can tell he didn't get to play much, because he went straight for his toy. He played with it, then brought it over to me and played. He even figured out the fetch game after a few tries.

I picked him up and walked over to two other Schnauzers; one very aggressive, and the other very submissive. They both started barking at the guy in my arms, who wasn't too sure of them. He was clinging to me.

I put him back in his kennel, then took the other two out, brought them into the play area and tried playing with them. They were cute and very intelligent. They didn't play with me as much, but did play with each other.

I put them back and was really struggling with the decision. I decided to get puppy #1 out of his kennel and bring him over to the others to make a decision (has to be friendly with other dogs as will be playing with Max). I pulled this guy out of his kennel, and was thinking this is a really hard decision to make, when the little guy crawls up in my arms and starts licking me under the chin. That pretty much did it for me. I picked out Augustus, "Gus", and they bathed him to come home.

I think that more than anything, this guy had been lonely in his pen and a bit frightened by all the other dogs. He was probably very uncomfortable in the small pen. I really don't think they exercise them much, as he took an enormous #2 after a while at home.

We played all afternoon, ran around, played fetch, explored places. Poor guy got tuckered out and fell asleep in my arms. Little guy just wants to be around me constantly.

I put him up in the kennel in my bedroom late last night, turned out the lights, and after crying a little bit he went to sleep. He didn't want to go in his kennel and I can't blame him, after all the stuff he went through and the kennel he came from and a fear of abandonment. It's a lot to take in one day.

A couple little things I forgot about Schnauzer puppies...

They're uber-intelligent.

• Pro's. He tapped on the child gate a couple times to go outside. I took him outside, and he went potty. He'll potty train quickly. He already recognizes and responds to his name.
• Con's. He figured out that leaning on the gate doesn't work, but by biting underneath he can pull the gate down. I need to go buy a new gate.

They must know where there family is at all times.

• Pros. I can walk him anywhere without a leash, and he stays by my side.
• Cons. I can't get out of eye-sight without him crying very loudly.

As I look down to the puppy, crashed out at my feet as I type this, I know this was a good decision.