Dear Cindy,
I wanted to write and share our experiences as first time puppy owners. We have two small children ages 1 and 2 1/2 and were very hesitant to even consider purchasing a puppy. I am not a dog lover and did not want to deal with the smell and hair in my house. What finally convinced me was a very sweet Westie named Abby who found her way to my house and into my heart. She walked down my driveway one day last summer and appeared to be lost so I took pictures of her and put them around the adjacent neighborhoods. Later that day her owners came to pick her up. From that day on I kept thinking of her and how sweet she was. I kept thinking of us with a dog. How would that work with our crazy lives? I could hardly keep the two little ones entertained.
My husband, who is a dog lover and has been trying to convince me ever since I have known him that we need a dog, loved that I had finally begun to consider purchasing a dog. We researched Westies and thought that this breed might be a good match for us. Our concern however was that most people did not recommend them for children. I kept thinking of Abby and how friendly and docile she was with my children and knew in my heart that the Westie was still a good match. Then we found Cindy and she convinced us that we could do it. Cindy was so helpful, comforting and patient with us from the beginning. We had endless questions for her and she always returned our calls and answered every one as if it was only the first we had asked. Cindy expressed from the beginning that we would have to be stern but that if the puppy grew up with the children that he/she would be fine with kids. Cindy graciously allowed us to visit several times before the puppies were born and after they arrived. When the day came to finally go and pick him out we were so excited, little did we know what was in store for us. We were able to play with all five males and see which one we wanted. On the way to Cindy’s I was very nervous as to how to pick out a puppy. People always say that they pick you and Merlin did. He came right up to my daughter and kept climbing on her and following her. We knew within 5 minutes he was meant to be ours.
The first few days at home were fun but very busy. Then reality set in and to be honest I was ready to take Merlin back. I had several tearful breakdowns with my husband saying that I think we made the wrong decision. At the time my son was 11 months and not walking and my daughter was just over 2 and potty training. So between taking the puppy out and cleaning up so many pee spots, and bringing my daughter to the bathroom and trying to keep the dog toys out of my son’s mouth I thought I was going to loss my mind. We called Cindy several times. She always gave us helpful advice and told us to stick with it. I knew in my heart that we were meant to go through this tough time and that we needed to stick with it. Four months later I can easily say that it is all worth it. Merlin is such a part of our family now; I can’t even imagine him not here. The time really flies by. Yes it is like having a newborn baby again but the advantages are you can put the puppy in the crate and walk away and they are only a newborn for a little over a month. Merlin quickly became crate trained and house trained and with each day he gets easier and easier. He is only 6 ½ months now and looking back I ask myself if I would do it again? My answer is yes because of our situation at the time. Fortunately my husband was home full time with the kids and I only worked part time. Merlin is so great with the kids he is very tolerant and patient. My daughter and Merlin love to run around the yard together and taking turns playing chase. I think my son is Merlin’s favorite now though because my son continually gives Merlin toys that he shouldn’t have. We are still working on Merlin’s jumping up on my son but he has good intentions. He just wants to bring him closer so he can lick his face. I hope you enjoyed our story Cindy and please share this with other customers. We have recommended you to everyone we talk to so please continue to be the wonderful person you are. Thank you so much for all your help and patience and I look forward to continued communication in the future.
Sincerely,
Beth, Steve, Caitlin, Tyler and of course Merlin |
Dam-Matilda
