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Homecoming

In my last column I talked about how we drove to Rochester and chose a female Pembroke Welsh Corgi. We named her and spent three weeks showing friends and relatives a picture of “Tegan.”

Two days before we were to pick her up, I got a cryptic email message from the breeder, asking me to call her that night. Immediately, I thought of all the worst possibilities, with the mildest being that we wouldn’t be picking up the puppy until the next week. When I called, Martha explained that the female was wide in the front and she was throwing her paws out to the side. She wasn’t show quality. She then offered us the male and we agreed.

It took a little getting used to, and, if we’d actually brought the female home, she’d never have left, but since we didn’t really know her, we made the switch to her brother. On June 15, we brought home Tegan. Since the name means “darling” or “favorite” or “loved one” it works just as well for a boy as a girl, and I just couldn’t abandon the name, even though we did have some boys’ names that we liked. We did end up referring to him as “she” for the first few days, but he didn’t seem to mind.

His registered name is Sunrunner’s Never A Dull Moment. My friend in Arizona suggested that name, and it seems apt for a Corgi. At one point, when we thought we might name him Tristan, I chose the name “A Knight to Remember,” borrowing “Knight” from part of his sire’s name. I thought his breeder might like something a bit more formal sounding, but she loved “Never A Dull Moment” and Tegan doesn’t care one way or the other.

Tegan didn’t seem to mind the ride home, after protesting just a bit at the beginning of the ride, and he’s adjusting well to his crate. His third day home, he went into his crate on his own, and lay down for a rest. He’s also sleeping through the night. I’m very happy not to be taking him out at 3 a.m. Maybe it’s because he’s a bit older. Whatever the reason, I’ll take it.

He and Gael are enjoying each other, too. The first day, Gael was a bit unsure exactly what Tegan was, and Tegan felt that Gael was a bit too big, but by day two they were enjoying chasing games in the yard, and by day three, Tegan was asking Gael to play in the house as well.

Naturally, I think he’s the smartest, cutest puppy in the world. I won’t bore everyone who also has the smartest, cutest puppy with tons of stories, but I have to tell just one. Last Sunday was broiling hot, but we still had to go out. Tegan sent from bush to bush, keeping in the shade, and when we were ready to go in, he went from one bush to the other until he was next to the fence, then he went up the fence line where there was a four-inch strip of shade.

He can go upstairs easily, but hasn’t yet mastered going down. He likes to be on the same level as Gael, so, if everyone is upstairs, and Gael goes down, he sits at the top and yelps. It’s a piercing sound, and gets results, as either Jim or myself scoops him up and carries him down.

It’s been a long time since we’ve had a puppy, so we’ve forgotten some things. For instance, one day, I overdid the treats, resulting in an upset tummy. I think it bothered us more than the puppy. He just threw up, and then continued on with what he was doing. I have to remember that, as happy as he seems, it’s quite a shock for him to leave his brothers and sisters and get whisked to a different home and yard, with absolutely nothing familiar. His breeder did start crate training, but even then, he could see and hear his siblings.

Soon, I’m going to take him to puppy kindergarten where he can meet many different types of dogs as well as their humans, and we can start teaching him some basic commands. While I do plan to show him in conformation, if he turns out not to be show quality, I won’t care. He’s a little cutie and he’s staying.

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