two legged or four legged baby or both?
They would be ready to go around the first week of August, and by then Dancer will be 8 months old. The surgery means I will be off work from June 18th till Sept 7th (perfect timing to stay home and get two oes trained) If I am lucky enough to get pregnant, the baby would be born probably late April or early May. By then Dancer would be about 17-18 months old, and the pup would be almost one year. I'm just wondering from others experience, if handling two adolescent dogs, as well as older children and a new born would be a bit much. On one hand I'm thinking it gives me lots of time to get both dogs trained, before the baby is born, and since I'll be home full time, it will make my whole life so much easier. On the other hand, will they still be at the rambunctious, chase each other around the house stage? I said to my husband "there may not be much room for you with two oes in bed and a bassinett beside me" LOL I'm just kidding of course... but hmmmm.... Okay, I'm just rambling... anyone's experiences with raising 2 or more young dogs as well as babies or young children.... I'd love to hear them! |
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| Umm, how is having that trio much different from having a third child?
As dear old Dad once told me, "You can never be prepared for a child so don't even try. Just do it and you'll get through it. You're not doing anything that hasn't been done for centuries." Go for it. |
| WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Darlin' you are brave to even be thinking about this! My hats off to you! If you have the cooperation of your family (and not try to do it all yourself) I think it just may be do-able. I really wish you luck with two legged baby...and wish you wisdom in making the decision about Dancer's pup! Deborah and Pirate |
| You go girl. Good for you for mothering the sheepies and uprights.
One cautionary tale: I had surgery last summer and could barely open the back door to let Henry out. Even though I was off work Henry went to doggy day care every day because I could not exercise him. At doggy day care, they came out to my car to get him and bring him back to me, I was that pathetic. Please talk to your doctor/surgeon about exactly what you cannot do and where you will hurt after your surgery and think about what a new puppy requires. Can you pick her up, run after her when she does her business in the wrong place, etc. On a different note what will you name the new puppy? With Dancer already in the family I think of Santa's reindeer and would like to propose Dasher or Vixen.  |
Wow, what a load to take on good luck! I would make sure that the whole family is on board for it and you would have alot of help if needed. Not all pregnancies are easy (mine were very difficult) and I would make sure you had the help needed in case, god forbid, you had proplems. If you have a hugh support group and feel like your family can handle it then go for it. You may also want to consider that not all puppies get along with kids and since you do not yet know the temperment of the new puppie you may want to take that into acount. I wish you the best of luck in what ever decision you make  |
| I wish you the BEST with whatever decision you make!
One word of advice - one of the most stressful things in life is having problems conceiving and I'm sure you're aware that this may be difficult following a tubal reversal and of the increased risk of tubal pregnancies. You may be under alot of stress over the next few months following your surgery. Now, maybe the addition of a puppy would help get your mind off of things and reduce stress. In that case, I'd go for it! But, if your the kind of person that would only find a puppy added to your stress level - I'd wait until you find out how things are going on the pregnancy front first. Either way, you're going to be sleep deprived - so catch up on your sleep now! LOL Kristen |
| Thank you for the replies.... LOL... most probably aren't sure if I'm crazy or just really maternal.... I'm not sure either...LOL
My husband and I have a 13 yr old girl, a 12 yr old boy, and 11 yr old boy and an almost 9 yr old boy.... lots to keep me busy, but also lots of help if they want their allowance!
I'm familiar with how I'll feel after the surgery, as I have had c sections, and remember the pain of having my tubes tied well. The day I had my 9 yr old, after almost 26 hrs of labor and then a c section and had my tubes tied at the same time, I came home in less than 24 hours because at the time I had NO help, and needed to be home with my babies. I had been gone less than a day, but was in tears when I got home because I was so happy to see the others...LOL... hormonal....
Anyway, I'm thinking that if I'm going to be home anyway, and the kids will be home, there will be lots of help to get two sheepie babies trained in time for the kids to go back to school, but as long as they're housetrained by the time the baby was born (if it works) then I think everything would be fine. And Dancer definitely will be reliably housetrained by then, and the pup, who will probably be named Chaser, would be well on her way to being reliable, she would be at least nine months old by then. (Dancer's name is Dancing Light, the pup I think will be called Sunchaser) Anyway... I know I want to get this puppy, but I'm worried that I may be biting off more than I can chew so to speak, and I also worry about losing the strong bond I have with Dancer or not being able to develope a one on one bond with a new pup.... need to think this through very carefully... but I bet you all know that as soon as I see these puppies I'm going to cave! |
| Hi Willowsprite,
My rather long post that I had responded with...eeks dissapeared so here goes again. Only you know what a huge undertaking you have set for yourself but if you feel confident that you can do it - then I would say go for it. The best advice ever given to me years ago when I had to make a hard decision was given by a worldly friend. She asked "think of the worst possible scenerio and than ask yourself if you would be able to handle it". 99% of the time we answer in the affirmative but if you have little doubts creeping in, then maybe it's better to wait. Don't get me wrong I'm not trying to discourage you but sometimes when we think or plan out everything and it seems on the right track things have unexpectedly come across to make our choices a bit more difficult. Take for example, I swore after the passing of my two cats that I would not have a housefull like my sister or my mom when I was growing up..nope I'd only get two from now on, same with dogs. Ha! Well the cat I fostered for the Humane Society for the supposed two weeks turned out to be older and had medical issues which deemed her unadoptable. Which meant to them when I returned her she would be put down! No Way! Couldn't let that happen...okay so what's three? Then the tiny 2 hr old kittens I was given to foster, one really struggled the first three weeks of her life...her brother was adopted easily but no one wanted her as she had possible medical issues. I had raised her almost from birth...I couldn't give her up..okay that made four. You are familiar with the story of Panda, the rescue from Hong Kong. I had everything thought out..Blue is 14 and Merlin is almost 9 months. The breeder would like to use Merlin as a stud at the age of three if he has a good bill of health and continues with his good disposition. I had planned on getting one of Merlin's daughters some day. My perfect family- Merlin and a female sheepie in three years time. Then along came Panda which threw everything for a loop. Wouldn't ever think of replacing him with even a pup...and lol I now have three dogs! I guess my point is in this long winded post is it certainly seems the timing is right and you have considered everything. I'm sure knowing you from your post you would be able to handle it. Just be prepared for things if they don't turn out quite the way you had expected! 
Whatever you do you know you will always have the full support of the wonderful people on this forum . Best of luck to you! Marianne |
| Yes, definitely a lot to think about... and I do appreciate your replies....
My original plan had been to raise Dancer, try to have another baby, and when Dancer was old enough to have pups if all goes well, keep one of her pups. I had planned on eventually having 2 or 3 female sheepies, however, just not in this time frame. Really though, I think it will be better timing to have my 2 sheepies a little closer together and that way their training will be taken care of before baby is born. At least that's how I hope it all works out! LOL I'm sure things will spin out away from 'the plan' but hopefully with me home it will be easier to handle. This is the first time I've had the opportunity to take the summer off work... I'm really looking forward to it... and a little apprehensive about feeling 'stuck at home' but with my kids to have fun with and two sheepies to keep me hopping I think I'll have plenty to keep me busy! And I MIGHT even get caught up on housework... or maybe not.... |
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