Eliot's Mommy would like to introduce Bronte

It's been awhile since I posted here. Please forgive me, but I had a really tough time after Eliot died. I don't think that I'll ever stop mourning the loss of that sweet little girl and her tragic situation.

But after some healing time and when it was safe to do so, Corey and I brought home a new baby girl. Her name is Bronte, she's a shepherd mix, and she's five months old. We adopted her on Sunday from the ADL. I know that after the first experience, you'd think that we'd avoid that place. But I find it hard to resist those dogs and the opportunity to give a shelter dog a second chance at life. I picked this one because she seemed very calm and sweet but at the same time very friendly. Once we got her home, we found out that she's also very playful and puppyish. She loves saying hi to strangers, little kids, and other dogs. She's so well-socialized that I find it hard to believe that she wasn't around kids and people before, or that she had been mistreated by people.

We know very little about her past life. We know that she was a stray and that she came to the shelter at three months of age. She spent two months in the shelter. The first available vet appointment was yesterday (new vet, old vet was great but too many bad memories at that place sadly). While waiting, I was reviewing her packet of paperwork that we had received from the shelter. I noticed on the record that she had been treated for "green nasal discharge" at one point. This was a red flag for me and I remarked to Corey that I'm shocked that the shelter hadn't mentioned that when we were reviewing her paperwork for adoption there. We saw the vet and he confirmed some troubling news about her past. She has a knot on her head from head trauma, the white stripe of fur around her hind quarters is from a scar probably from being trapped in a snare of some kind, and her bad teeth are a sign that she had had distemper. Thankfully, the vet gave her a clean bill of health and assured us that she's not contagious anymore. I'm amazed that this puppy pulled herself through distemper at such a young age and (I'm assuming) without any human assistance so quickly. I'm amazed that this puppy was either abused or fended for herself at such a young age through such hardship and shows no sign of fear and is so good-natured with us. It broke my heart learning how much the first few months of her life must've sucked.

I'm not certain if she had distemper while at the shelter. I'm suspicious because they did treat her for the nasal discharge and she had diarrhea for a month or so while there. They had her under quarantine and did all sorts of tests for stomach problems. They concluded that she required a change in diet (they switched her from Science Diet to id) and told us that that was her only health issue. We find it hard to believe that this is the second dog from there who's had distemper in four months. I just wish that their animal hospital and vet staff were better about catching the early warning signs. I don't know, perhaps I'm being too judgmental without enough facts. I just get very emotional about my babies and their health.

Ready for some cuteness?

I'm so glad you got a new baby. It's always hard to think about what life was like for our babies before us...Pepper was left outside of a wendy's with her mom and siblings just dropped in a box...the good news is that while the first few months of Bronte's life was hard she has an amazing future filled with love and happiness, which makes her one of the luckiest puppies in the world.

How sweet, and posing already! Congrats and I know that Eliot will be with her to help her along. Thank you for not giving up and still helping the best friends we can have.

oh my! she looks like my childhood dog tembo! I love her already!

Oops, I thought LT ate my first post!

A very handsome baby. Thanks for posting a great picture. Best wishes to her and you for her healthy growing up into a wonderful adult doggie to keep you good company for many years. I am taking my two schnauzers to the vets today for a regular check up and maybe look for any little problems which might be developing. So important to keep our babies happy and healthy.

She's beautiful. Congratulations!

Congratulations on the new addition to your family! She's beautiful!

One thing about your post flagged something in my head -- even though she's a shepherd *mix*, please note if she continues to have diarrhea problems. My darling shepherd was diagnosed with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency when she was about two, and the first signs of it were long bouts of diarrhea. The sad thing is that my vet didn't pick up on the EPI for several months -- mostly because it rears its ugly head primarily in purebred shepherds and is more rare in other dogs -- and my girl was down to skin and bones before we could figure out what was wrong with her.

Hopefully the lovely Miss Bronte will have no such problems, but it's just something to keep in the back of your mind.

hi Estrellita228
I am glad you found space in your heart to embrace a new dog, congratulations!
I wish you and Bronte a long and happy life together. She looks incredibly sweet.

Mandy2 - Aw, that's cruel. I'll never fully understand why people get dogs if they don't want to be responsible for their care and breeding. I'm so glad that Pepper found a happy home.

cal8769 - Heh, after Eliot died, I was convinced that I'd never find another dog as wonderful as her. A friend reassured me that my next puppy would have a little Eliot angel sitting on her shoulder and telling her how to be a good puppy. I don't know how true that is because Bronte definitely has a streak of naughty puppy in her. Her mom and dad definitely have their hands full supervising her.

maggie1944 - I'm crossing my fingers too. Even with dogs that survive distemper, they can develop neurological problems down the line. But right now we're just trying to enjoy the puppy years.

lindsacl - Thank you! We think so too.

alynnk - I'll keep that in mind. The shelter didn't send us home with any id nor could we buy it from the pet store without a prescription. So we fed her the dog food that we had used in the past. So I was thinking that her loose stools this week were a result of the sudden change in diet (normally I would wean gradually to switch foods). When we saw our vet he said to keep her on our brand because id isn't a puppy formula. He also gave her some Amoxicillin to help even out the playing field. If things don't improve by Tuesday, we're going back to the vet. Thankfully, Bronte's still been able to put on weight the past couple of months and she seems to be at a healthy weight. I've never heard of EPI. But my parent's shepherd mix also had a sensitive stomach.

It's so weird not knowing your dog's pedigree and playing "try to guess the hereditary traits". Before I realized that Bronte had had distemper, I was concerned about these odd little shakes she would get in a leg randomly and how klutzy she was. At first, I wondered if she had some Doberman in her since they get the "wobbles". Any Doberman owners know more about this?

FAMeulstee - Thank you for the sweet comments. Lol, I think I have space in my heart for fifty dogs. I just don't have the space in my apartment. :(

She's adorable and I'm looking forward to seeing more pictures of her.

Here you go phlegmmy! This was taken more recently.

Oh, I'm so happy you've found another dog to love after everything you went through. Losing a dog we love is so hard and everyone has to decide for themselves when or whether to get another, but I always think it is so sad when really good dog-people are put off having another dog because of the grief they have already suffered. There aren't enough good homes to go round and there's always a dog out there that needs you. I'm sure your 'replacement' (and I do know that's the wrong word) will also help you come to terms with your grief.

After a particularly adored dog died several years ago we swore we could never go through that again. We even stuck to that for 18 months. I never imagined I could love another dog the way I loved Biggles. Eventually life seemed too empty and we gave in and I'm so glad we did. Skeelo isn't Biggles, nor is he a replacement for him. He's another dog, equally wonderful in his own way, who needed us and who has brought more joy and laughter into our home than I would have thought possible. I know Bronte will do the same for you and there's no doubt she's fallen well and truly on her paws to have found such a loving and caring new family. Good luck to you all!

Alynnk, it's not EPI! After a very bad Tuesday morning, I made Corey stay home from work and we bumped up her vet appointment to that morning. Found out that she has Giardia and Cocicillia, two stomach bugs, both treatable with medication. In fact, she's doing much better. She's a bit sad with me because I won't let her play with any other puppies for a week or so until she's done with all of the medication.

But I had asked my vet about EPI. He's very patient with me and takes the trouble to explain things to me. I think that he has sympathy that I'm one of those crazy paranoid mommies. I go in with a list of concerns and asks things like, "My dog hiccups a lot. Is that ok?"

Booksloth, I like to think that I need her just as much as she needs me. Our lives are definitely different when we have a puppy in our lives. Sometimes I miss the Corey/Amy couple dynamic (bye bye romance!). When we have a puppy, we become "puppy mommy" and "puppy daddy". And when it's a new, young, sick puppy, puppy definitely gets all of our attention. Maybe we'll find more balance as she gets older. But I just missed having that in my life. And I think that any sacrifice is a small sacrifice indeed when compared with the great big rewards that you get from bringing that kind of love into your home.

Oh good, I'm so glad to hear it! Well, I'm not glad to hear about the stomach bugs, but I think you know what I mean. And you're not alone -- I'm one of those crazy paranoid mommies, too. :)

Believe me, your vet probably sees plenty of the other kind of crazies - the ones who finally turn up after their dog has been in pain for weeks. I'm sure s/he would much rather have our kind any day!