Meet Duke, the Perfect Dog!

We promised the kids a dog when we got to Montana. Well, sure as we crossed the Montana state line the questions started..."Can we get a dog now?" "When can we get a dog?" "Can we get a dog today?" So, the boundaries were set. As soon as the "house was finished" we would get a dog! So I had four very busy-bees working non-stop on their rooms. They also asked me from time to time if they could help me. They also broke down unknown numbers of cardboard boxes and hauled them to the recycle center. They are good children. They deserve a dog! So, when the floors were cleared and the boxes were gone, we took a trip to the Animal Shelter, only to leave broken-hearted. See, I had three criteria for the soon-to-be pet. (1) No shedding, (2) No bigger than a bread box, and (3) No puppies. The Animal Shelter apparently only carries furry, Montana-size dogs. Andrew tried to talk us into getting Charlotte, who was (1) very hairy, (2) much bigger than a bread box, and (3) had the look of puppy written all over her!!! Thank goodness for afore-mentioned criteria. So Charlotte will get to go home with another happy family.

Fast forward two days later; Jim and I were our scouting around some yard sales looking for a double box spring, two living room chairs, lamps, and other we-really-don't-have-the-house-done-quite-yet items. Standing there minding my own business, rummaging through a stack of North Face fleeces, a lady walks through the sale with a dog on a leash. She stops to chat with the lady having the yard sale, and I stop rummaging and ease drop. Apparently the dog's owners have just been admitted to a Nursing Home, and her family is "trying the dog out" but they're not really wanting such a small dog. She asked if she knew of anyone wanting a dog. I look at Jim, he looks at me, and I chime in "Does he shed?" That was the beginning of the end of our search for the bread-box-sized, mature, non-shedder. So, that is Duke's story. He is a Macalister, bred close by in Manhattan, MT. Glenn Close has two of these dogs. Be impressed. But I bet she did not get hers at a yard sale!