Let’s talk,
Dogs.
Man’s (and ladies) best friend.
The best listener of your problems,
The beggar of a lick of ice cream,
the silly moments and reactions they somehow manage that bring you deep belly laughs.
The one the keeps you motivated for the next day.
Your fur baby,
The puppy that saw you, the one that somehow knew to pick you, stealing your undivided attention in a way their squirming brothers and sisters couldn’t.
Your one and only, canine companion.
(unless you have more than one dog… then I’m just straight up jealous!)
Before we dive into how to bring your adventuring canine with you, I want to talk about the process of being prepared for adopting!
When I decided it was the right time to adopt a pup, I made sure I wrote up a couple of lists of the pros and cons. These lists weren’t only pros and cons, but of questions that were relevvant to PARENTING A CHILD. It was extremely important to look into how I was doing as a person, and how I would handle caring passionately for a loving pup for the next 15 years (yeah that’s kinda extreme, but that’s how I believe you should think when adopting any animal)
Below I’ve listed a few of the questions I asked myself:
-Was I stable with finances? Able enough on my own to handle a freak accident that may be costly?
-Train her well enough, where I’m eager to spend time consistently training?
-Was I available enough to be with her 70% (if not more) of the day?
-Could I potentially have people to help me watch her if needed?
-Could I afford dog food, a kennel, grooming equipment, toys, etc?
-Was I ready to find a vet that would work best for vaccinations, maybe one with a “puppy plan” bundle?
-Am I ready for a 24/7 adventure buddy, one ready for every hike, every climb?
Yeah, these questions may seem obvious, but they’re immensely important! If you’re thinking about adopting a dog for the mere sake of cheering you up, or maybe to help mend a relationship, that’s when you have to really ask yourself, “Am/are I/we ready?”
Of course, life is life- we will never be able to precisely predict the outcome of a day, nor know what’s going to happen next. As long as we commit do our best in making thoughtful decisions, you’re killin’ it!
If you can answer yes to a majority of the questions I asked myself above, or find some sort of common ground, you’re in the right direction. I overemphasize adopting purely due to it being one of those immeasurable “life impacting” choices, and there shouldn’t be any impulse reaction to rush into it.
An opportunity I took advantage of prior to being ready for a dog, was constantly volunteering to walk the dogs at the local animal shelter! This not only helped my sick obsession of desperately wanting a dog, but it gave me a copious amount of time to consider my life with a dog, without having the full commitment juuust yet. Besides that, it allowed me to better understand a various number of breeds, their defying behaviors, unique health considerations, as well as help out the animal shelter. It was a glorious win/win for everyone!
This brings me to my tale of how I was brought to my beloved Zen.
When I adopted Zenna, I had some pretty amazing friends accompany me on the daunting journey. I say daunting, for Christopher, a friend I’d met my first year living in Colorado, whom I consider one of my best friends, drove myself, and our buddies Wyatt and Cody through an enormous SNOWSTORM to bring her home.
And for that, I love them always.
It wasn’t as if this was our first rodeo, the sky puking snow was expected; however, the amount of flakes that aggressively fell from this particular unforgiving storm was almost unsurpassable! Trust me, as thrilled as we were for the next day’s snow day, I couldn’t help but quiver a teeny bit in my trusty Sorel boots. I must say, from day one of knowing Christopher and wistfully cramming his Jeep full of our buddies to experience another resort’s pow day, I’ve never felt a need to question our safety with him at the wheel! Even though it was the heaviest snowfall I’d ever willingly travel through, I held tightly onto my faith in his undeniable abilities, considering he’d done this drive all his life. Grabbing our snacks and essentials, we all humbly clobbered the incredibly twisty, hilly, anxiety infused roller coaster of the snowy pass before we knew it. Honestly, the intensity of our ride towards Denver had added a warmingly emotional experience to adopting my new little chicken, I couldn’t have asked for a better memory.
I do have to admit, before I adopted Zenna, I had visited the litter and her TWO times prior before being absolutely positive it was “meant to be”, that I was ready. When I drove to visit the litter the first time, I went with the intentions of adopting from a completely different group of pups! Well, all plans immediately changed once I’d earnestly walked through the swinging farm door, and caught my first glimpse of the bouncing Border Collie puppies roaming the house. Watching all of the cow-colored pups zooming around my feet as I took a seat, the daydream I had always fantasized of was finally coming to life.
Well.
Meeting Zenna was unexpected, by all means.
First of all, I was interested in adopting a male dog, for I knew males were less “sassy” than females, so to say.
Secondly, I was initially looking at their mixed breed litter, and not their purebred litter.
Yet, as all of the curious cow dogs scrambled to say hello, I noticed one pup that escaped the chaos, taking refuge behind the farm’s wood stove. Slyly peeking around the crackling wood stove, I made fervent eye contact with the quivering pup. As badly as I wished this one pup would come say hello, I knew it might be a slight chance, so I consciously prayed. After ten heartwarming minutes of watching the behaviors of both litters and easily exchanging small talk with the breeder about their history, I felt a soft brush against my left thigh.
The impressively small, shy Border Collie hiding from the ruckus was starting to crawl her way onto my lap. Halting our conversation, the breeder’s face became flooded with shocked by this remarkable action. “This little girl hasn’t come out to visit anyone yet, you must be special!”
Those powerful words made my heart soar- that was along the lines of how I’d imagine being “chosen”. Although I spoke as if I was contemplating between a sweet, active little boy, and the shy, loving girl, before heading out that first visit, my heart had decided. Considering they were only 6 weeks, it also gave me an opportunity to visit again, as well as fly back to Michigan, where I’d truly finalize my thoughts.
The moment we arrived at the familiar Farm’s driveway, for the last time, I felt my little heart grow triple in size. Entering the quaint and cozy farm house, with each bounding step full of overflowing giddiness. Our first sight was seeing her sprint wildly around after being freshly bathed, where she could now receive her vaccinations, and have last minute paperwork finalized. Carrying her in my trembling arms from the quaint farm house, promising the breeder I’d stay in contact, we were off. With a rapid blink of an eye, the day I’d daydreamed about since I was a little girl had turned into a jolting reality.
I had adopted my best friend, while accompanied by people I cared about immensely.
What was an unbearable drive there, turned into an enchanting ride home, for the furious snow filled sky had cleared, showing off it’s stunning, sparkling stars.
For as long as I can remember, I had fantasized about the day “I was old enough to adopt my own dog”. Sure, when I lived with my parents, we had two adorable dogs! Two of which I miss incredibly, and still cry for when I visit and leave the Upper Peninsula. Yet, I was considerably curious as to what it was like to own your own dog. The entire process, the going to meet litters, pondering endlessly throughout the search, waiting for them to pick you. Where I was able to adopt her on my own, financials squared away, and name exactly how I wanted it. I invested some serious “geekage” into pictures of aspiring outdoor women, companioned by their equally adventurous pup. That said, Zenna coming into my life was a blessing; although it was a whirlwind of a ride, I wouldn’t wish differently of any memory we have together. What can I really say? She’s an upscale badass- my dog is a better climber than ME! She helps ensure we get her training in, feed her obsession of frisbee, and stretch together! Yes, from watching my daily yoga practice… she has learned how to stretch :) And if you were wondering why I chose the name “Zenna”, pronounced “Zen-nah”, not “xena” ( like the warrior princess), it was to help remind me to practice staying calm, to focus on my own zen!
People, once you’ve adopted, you’ll quickly realize how your subtle emotions are expressed larger than ever before- that’s why I believe in bringing your canine companion with for all the fun! Whether that’s taking them running, hiking, bouldering/climbing (dependent of the dog), swimming, skiing, and across the country- try promising yourself you’ll always do your best to figure out a way to include them. In my next dog blog, I’ll be explaining more of what I want to share, which is how I’ve managed to safely bring Zenna along on all of our traveling extravaganzas!
I hope this blog helped anyone thinking about adopting, or will help shed some light on those putting off adopting due to wanting to travel. Maybe you simply want to hear more about Zenna’s life on the road; I mean, she’s happily travelled to more places than most of the people I know! As with every topic I want to regularly talk about, I feel an intro to it is necessary. So, thank you for reading the first of many “Dog Blog’s”, I appreciate your time more than you could imagine :)
Always travel with love,
Isabelle