Meet Ginger

"A House without a dog is not a Home".
I know more than a few of you subscribe to this belief. Tomorrow I will go to the States for 12 glorious days with my sisters in NY and to attend a cousin's wedding in Maryland. (Congratulations Anna and Aarish!) Originally, as I am going alone, (Freedom! Oh, did I say that outloud?) and Daddy will be a single with the 2 kiddos, the plan had been to wait til I come back and then we would begin searching the local Rescue groups for the right addition to fill the hole in this house with no dog. Hah! Never make plans, as fate always has other ideas for your life!

Enter Ginger, my "gap" dog.

I was calling her that because I had been watching her this summer for the neighbors when we lost Barney, so she filled the gap for awhile as I got used to not having my own dog anymore. The neighbors have only had her for a few months and when they returned to Shanghai, showering me with gifts of smuggled Parmesan cheese and salami, they had finalized a decision to return to Europe. Based on tiny quarters available to them and much uncertainty about what happens next (do they stay in Italy? Move on to Brazil? Perhaps Algeria?) they decided that it would be better for them to find a new home for her now rather than take her with. So the word was spread: Can anyone in the neighborhood take her?

I mentioned it to Heinz and his initial response was, "Well, she's no Barney". Truly, can any dog ever hope to be? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that my main concern was that she needed to be rehomed before I returned from my trip. Would having a new dog in the household while I am away make it too complicated? If she doesn't get her morning and evening walk (which can be very hard to achieve when there is only one parent in the house) will she chew up all the shoes and sofa pillows while Daddy and the kiddos are asleep? In the scheme of 2 weeks versus her lifetime, that fuzzy face won my heart and we decided to take her sooner rather than later. Last week she became ours. And we are so happy to have her.

She has all the qualities that makes Golden Retrievers one of the most popular breeds year on year:

the big, happy smile with the soulful, liquid brown eyes and the Nanny-dog love of children; she's just a year old and is so amazingly laid back, at first I kept forgetting there was a new dog in the house! Her coat is soft as silk and her leash manners are really a dream! She never barks, not even when the doorbell rings which is great in some ways but we've always taught our dogs to bark when they want to come in, not scratch on the door! Not sure how we'll handle that one and keep the patio doors in a condition acceptable to the Landlord! 

~Conrad is enjoying walking duties~

 She's found her little niche!

I guess she'll let us know when Santa arrives this Christmas!

Although for me, it already feels like Christmas when I wake up in the morning, knowing she's here. She seems to have adjusted to the change very well. She's attached herself to me so I worry that my departure will be stressful to her so close to the loss of her last family. But she is so well known in the neighborhood that already a few neighbors have offered to help out with walking her while I am gone. Thank you in advance, Miss Beth! Wish you could help us out too, Aunt Linda!

I do feel badly that we won't be rescuing a real homeless dog here but this situation fit everyone involved so well, it was silly not to move forward with it. In exchange I will probably make a donation to the local Rescues. In the meantime Ginger is happily performing her job duties of making sure the Living Room floor and the Garden do not blow away. Yes, Sisters of mine, there is really and truly now a Chinese Dog living in my house!