THE PUPPY DIARIES
LIKE hundreds of other Gold Coasters during lockdown in 2020, I decided to get a puppy, a golden retriever.
After ringing around, sending messages and looking at every website I could find, it became evident I’d missed the boat.
My three children were gutted, secretly I felt we’d dodged a bullet as life is hectic enough for this middle-aged reporter.
But a few months ago I got a surprise call from a reputable breeder who I’d left my contact details with.
A female puppy was ours if we wanted it – admittedly a year later – but I managed to convince the family’s beancounter it would be amazing for our children to have a puppy and learn how to take care of her.
Molly, as she was to be called, was born in May and we had to wait seven weeks until we could meet her, instead seeing videos and photos of the growing puppies. Waiting nearly two months was not easy for the kids but I relished the freedom, knowing that our lives would soon change forever.
Having a puppy is like having a child, and having had three of those in threeand-a-half years I knew I was in for a chaotic ride.
In saying that, I made the kids sign a contract agreeing to do their part in scooping poop, walking the dog and generally being helpful.
With excitement levels at their highest in the days before we got to meet our new baby, I thought I would just ask exactly which of the puppies was ours.
You can imagine my surprise when I was told that our puppy would pick us, and not vice versa. What the?
This is not how I thought things would go down ...