When I said yes...
Thursday, February 7, 2013
I was in no mood to say yes as I had convinced myself that a dog was the last thing we needed, given our lifestyle. It would completely ground us. No more free time , no more vacations ! A dog in our life would also mean we need to get back home on time, as there is a life dependent on us for its food, water and walks. The house would smell like a pen as against the usual lavender aroma infused with the smell of fresh linens.. And don’t even get me started on the carefully selected things in the house...
I know I sound like someone that hates animals .. but thats not entirely true I love birds, animals and I love dogs but I also love my clean surroundings. At some level I guess I hate the responsibility that comes with owning a dog. While I was convinced this is not what we want, my husband was more and more convinced that this is what he wanted for us.
These were the babies of Winnie (Dam) & Jack (Sire). We were told that we might not get one from that litter however, Winnie’s sister -Annie(dam) was also expecting her litter with Tex (sire) and if we got lucky we might get the boy we wanted. And so just like that it all changed. And I said Yes.
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And we got the news..
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
On 16th February 2013, we called the breeder (BG) saying we wanted to visit Winnie’s puppies and she told us that Annie was in labor and she was busy. And today (19th Feb) she called to let us know that Annie was the proud mama of a litter of 4 boys and 3 gals. One of those 4 boys was to be our Zazu, born on the 19th February 2013. Can you imagine the excitement to want to go and see the little ones..??
On 16th February 2013, we called the breeder (BG) saying we wanted to visit Winnie’s puppies and she told us that Annie was in labor and she was busy. And today (19th Feb) she called to let us know that Annie was the proud mama of a litter of 4 boys and 3 gals. One of those 4 boys was to be our Zazu, born on the 19th February 2013. Can you imagine the excitement to want to go and see the little ones..??
It turns out like human babies, the pups are delicate and susceptible to infections. So the breeder told us that she would rather that we came after the babies were at least 3 weeks old. So we set the date to go and visit the little powder puffs for 9th March 2013. Meanwhile she was sweet enough to send us our very first image of Zazu with his mommy and siblings. We still don’t know which one of the 4 boys is going to be our Zazu. All we know is he’s going to be loved tremendously and he’s one lucky boy. In return he’s going to change us and our lives for ever.
Im sure you are wondering how did we come up with the name Zazu ! We wanted a mostly uncommon (for dogs) short name but also something that was fun. There is something about animated movies that brings about a smile on even the most grouchy person. So I put together a list of names which of course included some ever green slangs from Amchi Mumbai. Pakaya, Circuit were a few on the list. Needless to say he was horrified (can u blame me.. after all he named our Betta fish Dandu !!).. Anyways I went back to some of our favorite animated characters (that have an attitude) and Zazu stood out from The Lion King. It was supposed to be a Swahili name without any meaning but it turns out Zazu in Hebrew means movement. And given the fact that Labradors are an active breed it just makes sense to call him - Zazu.
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We land up at the breeder's..
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Full of anticipation we landed up at BG's house and even before we rang the bell we could hear one of the Dam's announcing our arrival. It turns out that we were greeted by Lyza, the 10 year old matriarch of the family. And as we entered the house,both the new moms Annie (Zazu's mom) and Winnie (Zazu's aunt) came by to greet us. After the initial hi's and hellos with the BG, we were escorted to meet with her other 3 Dam's Kelly (who was in heat) , Lisa, Eva and Ally (Zazu's half sister). From there we went to the whelping room where on one side were 2.5 week old Zazu and his siblings and on the other side were his 6 week old cousins (Aunt winnies puppies ) one of which were to be our friends girl (Shadow).
Full of anticipation we landed up at BG's house and even before we rang the bell we could hear one of the Dam's announcing our arrival. It turns out that we were greeted by Lyza, the 10 year old matriarch of the family. And as we entered the house,both the new moms Annie (Zazu's mom) and Winnie (Zazu's aunt) came by to greet us. After the initial hi's and hellos with the BG, we were escorted to meet with her other 3 Dam's Kelly (who was in heat) , Lisa, Eva and Ally (Zazu's half sister). From there we went to the whelping room where on one side were 2.5 week old Zazu and his siblings and on the other side were his 6 week old cousins (Aunt winnies puppies ) one of which were to be our friends girl (Shadow).
At this point, we were told , their immune system isn't developed so we were not allowed to handle either set of puppies despite all the sanitization's.
We more than made up for playing with the little ones by playing with and petting the 6 month old boisterous Ally (Zazus half sister).
Even though between all the Dams, we got a lot of doggy time, we came back with the ache of not petting what one day would be our Zazu.
The wait began for the little ones to be weaned off of their mom around 8 weeks. BG gamely responded to our queries and even sent us some latest pictures when we terribly missed and wanted to see the little ones as they grew.
I guess anticipation kills time faster. Anyhow we decided to go and pick up our boy on Friday 19th April, but a couple of days prior to the date she wrote saying she would not be available and the date was rescheduled to Monday the 22nd April. On Sunday she called us again to reschedule yet again for the following day and we were getting more and more impatient.
Finally on Tuesday the 23rd April we went to bring something absolutely precious into our lives - our little boy Zazu. We picked him from between 4 boys and 3 girls that were his litter mates. BG gave us a choice amongst 2 boys that she felt best fit our personality.. A big chubby guy, who was considered to be shy was dropped into my lap while a peppy little fella in green ribbon was dropped into my hubby's lap. My chubby guy in blue ribbon was happy being petted and dint mind it when I turned him around to give him a belly rub. There was total submission and trust on his part. It turned out that he was the oldest chubbiest pup we had seen in our first visit. The green ribbon guy did not enjoy being petted leave alone getting a belly rub. When we couldn't make up our mind , BG removed the ribbons so that we pick one of them . I could still make out my blue guy and at that instant he became our Zazu. Even though we chose him, the fact remains he picked us first to be his new pack leaders by his complete trust. Our little bear -Zazu came home with us. The long drive home was uneventful . All he wanted to do was snuggle unto me while resting his chin on my husbands arm as he drove us back home. He came in and dutifully went straight into his crate to sleep.
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Zazu's first day at home..
Wednesday, Apr 24, 2013
Now that he's home with his forever family he's gonna take on the duty of telling his own story. 
For most of day, I slept, ate popped, peed and also had a pee accident after my lunch as I couldn't hold it in. I love hanging with my new mommy following her everywhere and I do whine a little when she was out of sight. Did I tell you I got to speak (bark) and showoff with the other members of my family via internet? They just looooved me . My uncle calls me a bear cub with big paws. Ohh.. and I made some new friends with our next door neighbors. Mommy said its ok but I was a bit shy and afraid and hid behind her. I have not seen so many people at the same time and have not seen any little people all my life. I guess I'll be okay in a few days and perhaps these little people will be my playmates..
I don't even know when daddy got back from work I was snoozing and I hear he was worried that I was either sick or simply lazy. Luckily for me mommy had taken lots of Pictures and Video's of me playing and seeing those relaxed him. I was woken up to go and do my business before they said good night.. After that all I wanted to do was play and snuggle and whine and talk(bark) . But they put me in my bed (crate) and dint pay any attention to my whining. So I talked(bark) and whined myself to sleep after 20 minutes.
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Zazu's first appointment with the doctor ..
Thursday, Apr 25, 2013
This morning, I woke the whole house with my whining and barking at 6 am.. I really really had to go and do my business. I'm told I have an appointment with my Vet but first thing in the morning all I want to do is play. Daddy's home with me today and Im gonna make the most of it. Daddy says Im mama's boy as my tail wags really really fast when she calls me or looks at me. While daddy and I played outside mommy got him his coffee and dressed me up with a Bandana and all. I felt I looked good you tell me what do you think ?
I met some more new people today and made a new friend "Lucky". He's tall with white wavy hair. Mommy and daddy wouldn't let me play with him as yet as I have not had all my shots. After all that excitement I went to sleep and was literally swept off my feet by mommy as they took me to my vet. Today was my first appointment with my new vet. And might I add, I wasn't very thrilled at first to go in. All the other boys and girls going in and out were much bigger than me and I had my tail between my legs. Mommy coaxed me along and at one point literally carried me in. I could hear Ohhhs and aaahhs and I knew they were talking about me. They said I'm a Biiiiig boy for 9 weeks and looked more like a New Foundland puppy, and not really an English lab. So mommy showed them pictures of my birth parents (I love her and let her know that with a lick and a wag of my tail). Now they were convinced I was an English lab . I heard mommy and daddy tell them that my both my birth parents are AKC show champions ..The people at the vets office couldn't keep their hands off of me. Every body at the office wanted to pet & cuddle me. I weighed in at 20.9 lbs and was told Im a bit fluffier (psst.. they said chubbier but I figured fluffier sounds much cuter) for my age.. Did you know I am 9 weeks and 2 days old today? The wonderful nurse gave me a couple of treats and of course everyone wanted pictures of me which I gamely posed for. If I haven't told you already, I think I like this vets office..!! The doctor said I look handsome and have perfect baby teeth, hair, eyes and heart. I do have a little bit of a runny nose but that is because of all the romping around in the grass in morning mist. My next set of shots are due in a couple of weeks. And then I can go meet and play with all the other boys and girls like me.
After the appointment I came home and played with mommy for a while before she walked away to let me play by myself so I figured I'd rather take a nap if no ones playing with me. After the nap I had my lunch and played outside in the sun with mommy for a loooong time. I was so tired that I dozed off in the garage itself. A white and brown cat whose name is Moon from across the street came by to see if I'd play with her but I wasn't interested. All I wanted to do was sleep. This evening I so look forward to meeting my friends from y/day at playtime after my dinner in a few minutes . Im happy you stopped by here to see how Im doing. Do check here frequently to see whats happening in my life . I plan on being a very good boy and have lots and lots of friends. I will keep posting here of my wonderful adventures and pictures. Adios Amigos .
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