sarah k summers photography: 01.12

As most of you know, Dave and I added a new pup to our abode in November. Well, people, this little man has quickly won over our hearts. We had been on the hunt for a furry friend as companion for miss Myrtle for a while, without avail. Both of us had our hearts set on an Aussie (we are partial to the breed, as Myrtle is part Aussie), but also loved the idea of rescuing. We searched shelters weekly and found a few that we wanted to bring home, but they just never worked out for some reason or another. I fell in love with the SWEETEST full-sized Aussie at the NM Humane Society, but he was already 5 years old and Dave really wanted a puppy. Understandable, especially since he'd never had one. I even tried to contact the breeder of my parents' mini Aussie to see if she'd be interested in breeding him--thus, we'd get a pup--but that didn't work out either.

So, one day we were hiking and came across this woman with an amazingly gorgeous mini Aussie. We struck up conversation with this gal, who informed us that the very dog in front of us just happened to have a litter of 2 week-old pups. FATE! A week later, we went out to see if THE puppy was there. When we walked in, we both fell in love with a red merle male--completely gorgeous and so sweet. He had already been claimed, though, so that left two other males in the litter (Dave really wanted a male). We ended up deciding on the only red-tri male--we decided well. Mr. Truman has brought so much joy and delight to our lives. He's a complete goofball and thinks he's a lot tougher than he actually is.

Having a puppy around has definitely changed everything--I forgot how much work they are. Then again, Myrtle went from puppy to adult in about a week and a half, so I naturally assumed every puppy was like her. Wrong. Despite the chewing and constant clean-up of puppy pee, he's been pretty awesome to have around.

Here are a few snapshots of Truman over the last two months.

Truman's sweet momma, Ella.