And then there was Kodi

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When we were at the CPHS on Tuesday, there was a stunningly beautiful dog with no information on his cage. When I asked about him, I was told that he had been brought in within half an hour and was still adjusting and I wouldn’t be able to see him. Then with the chaos of looking at puppies, I forgot about him. I was so busy readjusting my thinking from “cat” to “adult dog, housebroken and experienced w/ children” to “puppy, needs housebroken” that he completely slipped my mind.

Until I saw him on the website today. Kodi is a Siberian husky, experienced with young children, and completely housebroken.

That is the dog in cage 7 out of 8 who looked at me like “Where am I and can I come home with you, lady?” on Tuesday. He’s exactly what we’d wanted: adult, housebroken, kid-friendly in personal experience and breed and a big boy to boot.

As you may recall, I have generalized anxiety disorder which I’ve been able to manage through meditation, yoga, etc. since I was pregnant w/ Zoe and didn’t want to rely on medication to get over the hump. Then last night it set in and I’ve been a nervous wreck. How does it manifest? I’m clumsy, can’t eat, feel sick, get headaches (part of that is also our whiplash weather), can’t poop (whoo! TMI!), generally tense and, worst of all, my gums tingle. How is that the worst? Oh trust me, it’s nightmarish. Red rope licorice helps as does tough gum. Otherwise the only thing that can alleviate this level of anxiety is medication. Hawk has called in a prescription for me for something. Not sure which but it’ll be fun. I only take them “as needed.” Once when I was having an annual exam, my doc in Erie asked if I needed something. I said I needed a script for maybe 10 diazepam (I since came to find that lorazepam works better). He had a student observing that day and said, “Are you sure that’s all you need for a year?” I said, “You can give me more and I can chip a little V out of the middle and sell them for about six bucks a pop. I’ll cut you in.” The student’s eyes widened, jaw slackened. It was hilarious. My doctor laughed and said it sounded like a plan.

So why did I go from dog talk into anxiety talk? (1) B/c of the anxiety I’m, well, anxious and I switch topics like mad and chatter like a fool and (2) I think it was brought on by the idea of bringing home a puppy. Now I love puppies and I think the two puppies on our list are fantastic dogs. However I’ve only had Z having potty success for about 24 hours now (once that’s a bigger number, I’ll share how it occurred) and I have to keep an eye on H all the time when he’s awake (if there’s trouble to be found, he’ll find it). To add a puppy to watch, train, etc. to that mix just made me feel incredibly anxious. If I had more experience w/housebreaking, I wouldn’t have felt so anxious. Or if I had more experience with the breeds involved in Lucy and Koala. I have zero experience with huskies but Hawk had one as a child and he’s spoken fondly of Snow for years. I know a fair bit about the breed and that, combined with the fact that he’s been in a home with young children, sets my mind at ease.

So I called the shelter and yes Lucy is now available for our adoption. If we decide on her when we go down this evening, we can bring her home tonight. I asked if we decided to go with Kodi if there would be an additional 24 hr waiting period. She said she doubted it based on our application but that it would depend on whether or not there are other applications to adopt him.

I know it’s hard to place large breeds and adult dogs. If I could take all three, I would. They’re all wonderful. However I don’t think that Lucy or Koala would have trouble finding a home and I think that Kodi would. Moreover, he’s what I went in on Tuesday to find.

Is it fate? We’ll find out tonight, weather-willing. But first I need to pick up my prescription.

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