Keller's Companion

Week two with Keller was as good as the first. We are still working on potty training and the biting is getting better. We decided this week that Keller needed a companion. She was doing fine with our older dachshund, but he doesn't like to play, and definitely didn't like it when she bit on his tale. We thought it would be good to get a puppy Keller's age who she could play with and sleep with. We called the people who we got Keller from and they still had three puppies left. I went and picked out a little dapple male. He's a laid back little fellow, but oh so sweet. His name is Hoover, and he is fast becoming Keller's pal.

The First Week

Our first week with Keller has been great. She is learning where everything in the kitchen is, and doesn't bump into things so much anymore. :) She knows where the water bowl, her potty pad, and her crate is, though she doesn't like her crate very much right now. She is a spunky little girl who loves to play and bite things. Biting things is fine when she is biting toys, not so fine when she is biting your fingers, but we're working on that. She's sleeping better through the night now. At first, she would wake up around four or five in the morning. Now it's closer to seven or eight. She still naps during the day, but it's less often. She'd rather play. :) She sleeps in her crate in the kitchen at night, and stays there in the morning when both of us are in class. She doesn't like to be alone, but she's never alone for too long at a time. Our schedules work out pretty good so that when one of us is gone, the other is at home. I think it's important for her not to be left by herself for long periods of time. Occasionally, we'll leave her in the kitchen with the baby gate up, so she can run and play, while we do something else at the house.

Keller is getting along great with our other two dogs. Wicket, also a dachshund, is nine years old, so he's a bit of an old man. He likes Keller as much as he does any puppy. Wicket doesn't care much for her when she is biting his tail though. When Keller is asleep on the couch, Wicket will curl up beside her sometimes. I'm hoping they will become buddies as she gets older. Bella, our boxer, likes Keller as well. We have to be careful when Bella and Keller are in the kitchen together because Bella will get excited sometimes and doesn't watch where her feet are going. She could easily kick Keller across the room. Bella's bed is in the kitchen too and Keller will curl up beside Bella sometimes.

Keller had her first bath today. She wasn't sure what was going on at first. I filled up our sink with a couple inches of water to bathe her in. She just stood there at first, then tried to drink the water, and then decided that she didn't like being wet and tried to get out. I successfully got her bathed and dried off. She was shaking, so I wrapped her in a blanket. She burrowed down in the blanket, like any good dachshund would do, and took a long nap.

We also took her to the vet for her first check up and shots. Everyone oohed and ahhed when they saw her. She was really sweet and sociable to everyone who petted and held her. And she seems to be in great health despite being blind and deaf.

So the first week went well. She still learning and growing. We're working on making her stop biting and fine tuning potty training. Other than that, she's the sweetest little baby.

How It Started

Recently, my sister came across an ad in the classifieds that was selling mini dachshunds. Because my mom raises mini dachshunds, she was curious and decided to take a look at the ad. In a litter of black and tan dapples, there was one female puppy who was blind. She has a genetic defect that occurs when someone breeds two dapples together. It causes huge problems for the puppy, therefore it is an unacceptable breeding practice. My sister was immediately drawn to the puppy. She called about her and finally got in touch with the owner, and she and I went to look at the puppy. It became clear after we saw her that she was both blind and deaf, but her sweet and lively personality and her sad situation made her impossible to refuse. We took her home, a little overwhelmed, but adoring her. My sister gave her a very appropriate name: Keller. Watching Keller in the past few days has been amazing. Even though it seems as if she doesn't have a thing going for her, she is just like any other puppy. She is adapting to her new home rather quickly also. Despite not being able to hear or see, she has remarkably good senses of touch and smell. These, and taste, are the only sense she has to use. Likewise, those are the only senses we have to train her with. We need lots of patience and information. Keller, and the two of us, have a long read ahead. I can foresee that she will teach us a lot and continually amaze and surprise. So keep my sister and I, and Keller in your thoughts and prayers. We are going to need it!