Well, we took in a foster dog over the weekend. It's our first time fostering and this dog has been through a lot so we're feeling a little like new parents who suddenly take a baby home and feel they are ill-prepared and inadequate. Okay, maybe that's just how I feel. I think my husband is feeling just fine about the whole thing, but we are both totally helicopter dog parents right now. We hover over every move of a dog who's received little, if any, positive attention throughout his life so far. I really blame this on the special circumstances and the fact that the dog is not completely housebroken.

Our foster dog is a just-retired greyhound racing dog. He made the long trek from Alabama to Michigan just a few days ago. He's never lived in a home before and everything is new to him. Yes, everything. Sometimes I wonder if he's even been outside before. When we take him out he carefully observes every sight, sound, movement. If the birds are chirping loudly, he has to stop in place and listen. When a car drives by, we have to stop and watch it. He was quite confused when the snow started falling. He jumped up from his pillow and watched it through the window, then ran to the doorwall to get a better view. It only snowed for a few minutes and when it was over, he decided to lay down again. Maybe he thought the house was under attack by tiny white bullets.

He follows us around all the time. He tries to go in the bathroom with us. He walked in our shower (when noone was in there, of course!) That was a sure sign of a dog who's never lived in a home. Every other dog I've known has been petrified by the shower, but not this one. He likes to walk in there and sniff around whenever he gets the chance, just as calm as can be. He has no idea of the terror that lurks inside that shower. It's now been a few days and he is finally following us a little less and napping a little more. Thank goodness because his eyes have been super bloodshot and they're finally starting to look normal!

He is really tall and his head is well above the height of our kitchen table, which has proved to be quite a problem in the first few days. Remember, he's never been in a home before and he doesn't know how to act yet. Also, he's used to a sort of communal eating where the (really disgusting 4D) dog food is thrown into a thing for all the dogs to eat from and they all have to get their share before it's gone or they're out of luck. So it's been a little difficult to cook and eat these first few days. I forgot to mention that he can reach the counter too. So I've been a little less than creative in the kitchen. I'm trying to stick with what requires the least preparation or preparation which I can do on the windowsill! To his credit, he is getting much better at not putting his nose on everything within his reach.

Check out Buddy Jr. trying to recover from his jet lag! ;-)