Scattershooting

Meet the newest Lampe: Bridget

Mon, February 06, 2012

The boys finally left for school. Thank goodness.

Every few minutes since Sunday afternoon they have been asking the same question. “Ok, Dad, when do we get to bring the puppy home?”

The answer is the same every time: “Not soon enough for you guys, but too soon for your Mom and I.”

Understand, I am very excited to be getting a Lab pup from friends Russ and Janice Nash. We went over and visited the pups at their home Sunday and it was the highlight of the weekend (who really cares if the Giants or Pats win yet another Super Bowl).

The boys had fun with little Bridget, a black female who is not the wildest pup in the litter, but not the sleepiest, either. Actually, they had fun with all the pups. I still love the fact that a Lab can throw black, chocolate and yellow pups all in the same litter.

No chocolates in the latest litter for Russ and Janice, but the yellow and black pups they have are sure cute. (Incidentally, they still have one pup left, ready Feb. 22. They are AKC registered and have hunting backgrounds. Call 309-565-3241.)

The cuteness won’t last forever, though. And that’s why I am sobering up to the realization of what will come. Maybe Bridget will not be a chewer. Maybe she won’t dig holes and gnaw on the deck and kill everything that comes into the yard (like our last black Lab, Buck).

I doubt we will be that lucky. The hard truth is that Labs are not easy to deal with for their first two years. Buck ate the cedar shakes off our garage as a pup. And he used to love to chew on the phone lines running into the house (until I built a large fence around them).

For all the difficulties, I’ve come to the realization that Labs just fit better into my life. They like water and retrieving but they can also do a passable job in the grass. Actually, in many of the situations where I hunt birds, a Lab is better suited to busting brush.

They are good around the house and have more personality than many breeds.

So sometime later this month, the die will be cast. The pup will come home. The grass will be killed. Toys will be ruined. And our family will all be the better for it.

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