T is for Temptation....or Timing

Yesterday afternoon I was absolutely wasting time on the web when I came across a notice about a male pup for sale.  For whatever unjustifiable reasons I look at these ads knowing full well that while a new pup is somewhere out on the horizon, it's not happening any time soon. This particular dog comes from very good bloodlines, good enough that any pup from this breeder will make my short list when the time comes.

The note said the dog couldn't be shipped until June 1 because the breeder would be leaving on Monday for Montana. This is where the devil on my right shoulder took over. Knowing this breeder lives only a few hours from me, I could make a quick phone call and odds are pretty good that I could go pick that dog up before Monday. Seriously, I was one phone call away from rearranging my weekend and having a new bird dog.

But the reality is we already have one yipyip non-house trained (and non-sporting breed) puppy courtesy of Santa, that fat bastard. Another fountain of yellow puddles and brown piles might not be exactly what we need just now. I know this because my wife said so. There's also that time thing, the somewhat necessary requirement that if you want a good bird dog, you'd better put in the time when he's a pup.  Strike two.

Speaking of two, two weeks ago my oldest dog, now 15, developed a case of idiopathic vestibular disease.  If you're not familiar with this, don't feel ignorant.  Two weeks ago I wasn't either. The symptoms are eerily like those of a stroke and many dogs will stop eating for several days.  Mine did, and had I not known what to expect I'd have thought his time had come.  But he rode it out and is back to normal, knocking the trash can over and all of the other things I didn't miss during his down time. More significantly, it looks like he'll be around a while, meaning our house limit of three dogs is clocked. Strike three.

Had things worked out a bit differently, I might have made that trip to NC today. I might be sitting here posting a photo of a new Brittany pup while he slept next to me in the chair. I might be house training and crate training and invisible fence training and taking walks in the woods all summer. I'd be thinking ahead to yard work and teaching him to come to me and go with me, patterning and staying out front and all those good things.  All this will come in time.  Just not this time.