Fostering is Family Friendly

It appears as though Wheat Penny has already found her forever home. That was fast! After all the ups and downs of Galina’s adoption, we weren’t expecting WP to be swooped out from under us in mere days!

Actually, it can’t be that quick because OPH requires puppies to stay with their foster home for at least two weeks. This means WP will be here for another week.

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Wheat Penny’s new forever mommy, Jana, will be here to take her home in exactly one week. This has changed the status of our little darling.

No longer is she a potential long term guest, now she’s more like a visiting grandchild. We are having lots of fun with her, maybe more so because we know she’s not staying.  Really, fishing that cat turd out of her mouth or changing the puppy pad isn’t so hard to do when you know it might be the last time.

I indulge her on the couch, wrestling, tummy scratches, ear kisses, because I know these days will be gone in a flash. And because, truth be told, she is crazy-adorably cute. Greeting card cute. No one can resist-her cute. See – 

Which is why I knew before Jana even arrived on Saturday that she would be smitten. (And she was.) No one can resist the charms of Wheat Penny.

Plus, she’s a whole lot of fun. Brady let her help him with some writing.

Addie, who is very much a cat person, rather than a dog person, speaks to her in a voice sweeter than sugar. “Who’s the cutest puppy ever? Who? You are!”

Even Ian, who grew very tired of her overtures, can’t hold his hard line anymore. Initially, he complained about her. Whenever he sat down to eat, she circled his chair, occasionally jumping in his lap or nipping at his feet or licking his toes (if they’re available). This may be because he eats the most frequently (he’s playing baseball, soccer, and throwing in Track & Field this spring), and is the most likely to drop a few morsels in his rush to finish and move on to the next thing. He grumbles and puts her in her crate before taking his plate to the table, but lately, I’ve noticed, he’s playing with her more and speaking in the baby-language we all adopt around her.

On Saturday afternoon, after the big Meet and Greet (Foster lingo for the first time potential adopter and potential adoptee meet), I met a friend at a park for a hike. I took Wheat Penny along to entertain her 10-year-old daughter who has been petitioning for a new puppy. (Nick said this was like taking crack to an addict.) Of course, Wheat Penny LOVED Shannon. And Shannon LOVED Wheat Penny. This is because Wheat Penny LOVES all people, especially children, and especially especially children who love her. I gave Shannon the leash and the rest was history. We enjoyed following the two of them on a nice hour-long hike

This is what Wheat Penny looked like afterward. (It’s a rare moment to find her still when outside her crate.)

On Sunday, we took Wheat Penny with us to Ian’s soccer game. She toured the sidelines gracing her adoring fans with a quick snuffle or kiss, sometimes even laying out for a tummy rub. Then she spent the rest of the game hog-tying my chair in her efforts to get to the popcorn a neighbor dropped.

She continues to try to woo the cats, with very limited success,

Even Gracie is a convert, finally relenting of her puppies-are-beneath-me stance and playing with her. Though, she still won’t share her favorite toys and quickly puts Wheat Penny in her place if she dares to touch one. I have to wonder if Gracie kept her distance with both our foster dogs, waiting to be sure they weren’t going away. That might make Wheat Penny’s exit a little more heart-breaking. Hopefully, Gracie will get accustomed to the foster dogs and warm up more quickly with each one.

A friend asked me recently if I was glad we were doing this. (I believe the question arose after she’d seen the damage Galina did to our ottoman and listen to me talk about Wheat Penny’s ‘poop hallway’ incident.) I told her that one of the best things about fostering has been something I hadn’t anticipated.

When your kids are teenagers there is very little that you can do together (without a credit card), and fostering has been a fun experience for all of us. It’s something we can share. My oldest graduates in less than two months, so family time is especially sacred right now. If uniting against (and in favor of) a destructive, adorable puppy is something that puts us in the same room laughing together, I’ll take it. Fostering is a win-win for all of us (except maybe the cats).