Maybelle's View......

Adding a new family member has both joys and challenges.  An adult dog has quirks, and it takes some time to find them.  Maybelle is no exception.

She is sweet.  Everyone who sees her (those not put off by her sheer size) loves her.  She never says 'no' to a pat on the head.  Small children can hug her and squeeze her and kiss her and call her George and she just doesn't mind. 

She is humble.  If another dog does not want to be her friend she will back off and sit down and wait it out.  If Mom's cats want to whack her upside the head a few times, she's willing to take it and walk away.  If Simon wants her leftover dinner, even if she isn't really ready to declare it 'leftover' yet, she'll let him have it. 

She is an excellent timekeeper.  At 5:20 AM her nose touches mine, EVERY morning (scared the SNOT out of me the first couple of days - that's a big set of eyes to be looking at before I get my glasses on!).  She knows when it is time to eat and when it is time to go for a walk.

She knows what she wants.  Cars can drive by, no problem.  Motorcycles, no big deal.   School buses, big blue University buses and most trucks?  Drive on.  But she is determined that someday, somehow, she is going to catch herself either a City Bus or a Ford F150.  Or maybe an ambulance.  Yeah, that would be okay too.

She is enthusiastic.  She will walk, anywhere, anytime, any distance, and come home and be ready to throw a tennis ball around the house.  She will yank your arm out of the socket if there is another dog to meet and greet across the street.  She will happily run behind any jogger.  And whenever she sees Squeaker she gets so happy she blows him off his feet.  ("I'm OTAY!  Maybelle missed me!")

She is NOSY.  No matter what is happening, she needs to be in the middle of it.  She wants to go over to Mom's side of the house and check on the cats and explore several times a day.  She wants to check out the basement, the insides of closets, and anything behind any closed door.  Oh, and what's in that gym bag?  Huh? Huh?

To anyone who has ever considered getting a dog:  Don't pass over an adult in a shelter.  You could be missing out on a Maybelle.

DeeDee