Another Serious-Looking Puppy

Big Sister and Little Brother

Isabella was such a good big sister from day one, allowing Jake to mess with and share her food and her water bowl, plus any toys that had survived Isabella's earlier puppy days.

New Puppy in the House

Two Better Than One?

From day one, Isabella has been considered my husband's puppy. He was the one so adamant about getting a puppy, a husky at that, and he was the one that searched site and after, looking for the perfect puppy. When he finally found The One (Whispering Oaks Farm), he was the one that contacted the breeder and set up the time to meet and get our new puppy. Because of my husband's job, it was well after dark before we made the hour-plus drive to get our girl. She slept in my lap almost the whole way home.
Isabella went from being among brothers and sisters for the first eight weeks to being an "only child" (only dog?) for the next six months or so. She whined about it at first, but got used to being alone during the day while we were at work. But once home, she followed us around constantly. Understandable, and cute at times, but more often times than not, it started to border on annoying and distracting for me, having a little shadow behind me everywhere I went. I started thinking about getting another puppy, a playmate for Isabella. I didn't want there to be alot of age difference between the two, and I knew I wanted potty training and such to be done with once and for all sooner rather than later down the road.
I decided to get a male instead of another female, in hopes of keeping fighting between the two to a minimum. And since Isabella was clearly our Alpha girl, she'd be sure to keep a male husky in check. :)
Since Isabella was my husband's puppy, this one would be "mine." So it was my choice where to look and which to choose. After much searching and contacting a few, I tried contacting Isabella's breeder, and as luck would have it, they had just had a new litter-- Isabella's parents' new litter, at that. And I had first pick.
More or less eight weeks later, we made the same after-dark drive with Isabella in tow.
Unlike Isabella, Jake was very much awake when we first met him, and although he wore the same serious expression the whole time, his tail never stopped wagging. He had big paws for a little puppy, so my husband said he knew he'd be a big dog one day-- probably bigger than Isabella.
We got Isabella out of the vehicle for the two to meet. Isabella was excited beyond belief and couldn't contain herself, which probably made little 'ole Jake a little nervous. He growled at her. No teeth, just a low, throaty growl. We'd pull Isabella back, then try again. Growl. We let Jake play in the grass for a bit, then put him in my lap for the ride home. We only let him stay there for a short bit, however, because Isabella kept trying to come in the front seat, wanting the same closeness and attention that this new furball was getting. So into the backseat Jake went. It took a few minutes of adjusting, but before long they settled down, Jake squished as close to the other side of our seats as he could be, and Isabella laying more or less on top of him. (To this day, they ride more or less like that, with Jake still content to be squished a bit and always as close to us as can be while in the back seat.)
The look on Isabella's face at times during that ride home was priceless. "Okay, this was fun when we were outside, but what's he doing coming home with us?"

Unlike Isabella, Jake went from being around a brother and sister to another sister, so he never got used to being alone. He was such a whiner in those early days...still is when penned up, but not near to the degree he was in those first few weeks (maybe even the first month or so). My husband wasn't so sure Jake was going to cut it at first, but Jake has -- slowly -- started to get there. Here's hoping for leaps and bounds more. :)

Daddy's Big Girl

Isabella and Photo Booth

A Moment with Mommy

Having a little fun with Photo Booth.

The Best Way to Sleep

Soon after moving, Isabella began to get in the habit of sleeping on her back, legs splayed and paws in the air. Don't know why for sure, but it probably had something to do with going from carpet to hardwood in the living room, and it being cooler to sleep that way. Regardless of why, it was always entertaining to watch, especially when she got into dream mode and started moving her paws around.

Another Friday Night Drive with Mommy

Some months ago, my husband got a new job about an hour away from where we were currently living. We found a house to rent and my husband stayed there during the week, while I continued to work back home and came up on the weekends, Isabella and boxes and boxes of our stuff in tow. She was a good sport about it, and always looked forward to seeing her daddy.

E-Collar

Despite the undeniable fact that Isabella would make beautiful puppies, my husband and I didn't want to breed her, so she had to wear an e-collar after she got fixed. For two weeks. Two very long, frustrating weeks. Interestingly enough, I think the whole thing was more frustrating for me than it was for Isabella. Though she didn't understand why she had to wear such an annoying thing around her neck, she seemed good at ignoring it most of the time, and instead honed in even further on her listening skills, since her range of vision was somewhat limited. Playing with toys (especially that green ball) was a bit of a challenge though, since she couldn't get her paws anywhere near her mouth. But she was persistent, and eventually even mastered the stairs before the two weeks were up. Isabella isn't the quitting kind. :)

Note: This picture was taken after a trip to the vet near the end of her two weeks, a trip made necessary by Isabella's sudden desire to chew her e-collar's tape until it was falling apart and literally hanging by a few threads from her neck. So this is a picture of her newly re-taped e-collar. :)

Fun at the Park

Paws

My Happy Girl

Mt. Dew Bottle

Bottles are fun enough for chewing on and chasing, but they become even more alluring when change is put in them and the cap screwed on-- oh, the noise! Oh, the fun!
Of course, only do this if you can handle the racket for an extended period of time. :)

Smile for the Camera

Posing with my Green Ball

The only toy that has survived her early puppy days (as well as her brother's, which is saying even more, given the power chewer he is). Pretty much indestructible. A rare find.

Lazin' Around

People seem surprised sometimes by how many decent photos I get of Isabella, but she makes it pretty easy at times-- that, and I think she's a bit used to my snap-happy ways...

Bathtubs are Fun

Keep bathroom doors closed and shower curtains pulled to when this one's around. :)

Can I PLEASE go back outside now?

More Snow Photos

A Snowy Christmas Holiday

The day after Christmas we got snowed in. While my husband and I were stuck inside with under-the-weather symptoms (what horrible timing, I know), Isabella spent a little time out in the snow. It was the first time she'd ever seen it or been in it, and, as one might have guessed considering her breed, she loved it, which made it hard to convince her to come back in...

Isabella's First Christmas

A juicy piece of meat made especially for her by her daddy, much running and chasing with Skunk, and an afternoon walk in the country...A day well spent, a night well slept. :)

Reindeer Toy for Christmas

Sadly, as cute as the toy was, it didn't last long.

All Things are My Domain

(Note: Isabella only got to enjoy this for the first six months or so-- between her growing bigger and us getting another rugrat like her around the same time, the space became too valuable to allow her (well, them) to sleep on our bed any longer. Ah, well...all good things must come to an end at some point, right?)

MY Mommy

My husband loves to play around. When Isabella was little, he loved to come wrap me in a bear hug-- or, alternatively, guard me like a basketball player-- as a way of keeping Isabella from getting to me, while saying "MY mommy" over and over. I'd either be laughing at this point or trying to play along, calling out Isabella's name. Meanwhile, Isabella would frantically jump around, trying to get to me any way she could. On one particular afternoon, I was lying on the couch, and my husband "covered" me so Isabella couldn't get to me, and teased her with saying "MY mommy, over and over. And like before, Isabella was trying to get to me at any access point. Finally he stopped and stepped away from the couch. In one quick motion, Isabella jumped onto the couch and on top of me, lying on me in such as a way as if to say "No, MY mommy-- so whatcha gonna do now, huh?" We couldn't help but crack up.

Thanksgiving Walk in the Country

I think fall is the most beautiful season, don't you?

Isabella's First Thanksgiving

We went over to my parents' for Thanksgiving, bringing Isabella with us. There, she got to meet our parents' dog, Skunk, and my dad's cows. Skunk doesn't usually have any other dogs to play with, so he didn't know what to think of our masked, energetic puppy. And I'm not sure who was more curious about the other-- the large herd of cows that gathered around the fence, or Isabella, trying to figure out what the heck these giant, funny-looking creatures were.
-----------------------------------
After the usual grand lunchtime meal, we went for a walk in the country. The only thing Isabella would've liked better was if she could've been off her leash, like Skunk.
----------------------------------

Walking with her Daddy-- one of my favorite early shots of the two of them together. :)

The Stare

This Bed Tastes Good...

Wild Eyes

I Smell...