Tomlin’s New Brother

You might have guessed from the title of this post, or seen the pictures on Facebook already, but in case you haven't, Tomlin got a new brother over the weekend.  We brought home a 6 week old Lab/Black Mouth Cur mix puppy; his name is Rooney (we named him after the owner of the Steelers, because we’re obsessed with the Steelers of course! lol Read how Tomlin got her name here).  Rooney was rescued from a family that emaciated their animals on purpose (I don’t understand why people do this.  You don’t have to like animals, but you don’t have to abuse them either ARG!).  Aside from removing Rooney from the negative environment, Phil and I have wanted to get Tomlin a playmate for some time but we were going to wait until she was one.  However, during the Christmas break while we were out of town, Tomlin stayed with a great friend of mine who has a dog and a cat of her own.  For two weeks, Tomlin had 2 playmates all day long.  When we returned to Houston, of course Tomlin was happy to see us, but it was clear that she was sad without her buddies.  So we decided to not wait until she was 1 and just get another puppy right away.  When we learned about these puppies we felt like it was perfect timing.

The picture on the left is Phil with Tomlin the day we got her.  The picture on the right is Phil with Rooney, on Saturday.

Introducing: Mr Rooney Hawley

To be honest, I was very nervous about getting Rooney; much more nervous than I was with Tomlin.  Whereas before Tomlin, I was concerned with how Phil and I would work as a team, and how a puppy could change things.  I have no idea why I let this anxiety exist; there were no issues with any of that.  This time my concerns were for different reasons: I was worried about how we would be able to take care of an already struggling pup, what would the medical bills be like, how would Tomlin react to another pup in the house, would Tomlin think she was being replaced, how will we have the energy to take care of TWO puppies?!   Fortunately, as was the case before, none of my anxieties have been justified.

Rooney is very easy going; he simply goes with the flow.  Tomlin is having a little bit of an issue sharing her toys, but we are working through it and they are getting along very well.  Our nights are very long with a new fur baby in the house but everyone is still alive lol.  I’ve noticed some differences already between the two pups.  Tomlin was not a chewer; she chews her toys, but has never tried anything else.  Rooney, on the other hand, chews everything. His favorite thing to chew on are electrical cords.  Don’t worry, we are watching him like a hawk!

Tomlin meeting RooneyChecking out her new brother.  Tomlin is not a big dog at all, but standing next to 4.5lb Rooney makes her look like a giant lol

I worked from home yesterday to help Rooney and Tomlin adjust a little bit more, but classes resume today.  I’m wondering how long I can keep up with my lectures, grading, and  research while being sleep deprived. hmmmmm lol Hopefully for at least a month or so until we get a system going around here.  Rooney will be going to work with me for the next few weeks too, so I think that will help.  But anyways, for now, this is what our house looks like:

running through paper towels like crazy

lots of teamwork and shift work

chasing puppies to make sure everyone is getting along

teething

the camera flash is going crazy

napping when Rooney naps

running through food faster

toys sprawled all over the floor

two of everything: bowls, toys, blankets, beds, etc.

It’s a crazy time, but a fun time too.  Lots of laughing and smiles. 

“No one better disrupt my brother’s nap!”Rooney likes to eat with part of his body in the bowl lolTomin is teaching Rooney already.  Lesson one: begging!

Tomlin, guarding her brother