Below is a collection of photos of Jasper & Dudley, our beagles for 8 years. This is actually a page from our scrapbook we made for Julia.
Yesterday was a bittersweet day. Jasper & Dudley went to live at their new home. We've been considering finding a home for them since Georgia was just a few months old. If you've ever had beagles, you know how sweet they are, but you also know that they are hunters and are hard to control when they pick up the scent of any other animal and can get VERY loud! (It doesn't help that Beagles are bred to be rabbit hunters and there is a rabbit that is apparently living in our front yard!) They are very sweet dogs and are great with children, but have become too much for me to handle. Shelby was worried about his traveling schedule and me being home with two babies & two beagles. It never failed that when he went out of town was usually the time they decided to dig out from under the fence, find an animal in the yard and spend hours trying to capture it (the whole time being louder than ever) or getting sprayed by a skunk...just to name a few experiences I've had to deal with on my own! AND, if we were going to give them away, we really wanted to do it before Georgia got attached. SO, a couple of weeks ago we decided to put an ad in the paper and see what kind of response we got. We got several calls, but I turned down people for one reason or another...I wasn't going to give them to just anyone!
We had been out running errands, etc. and were on our way home when we got a call yesterday. The couple had 4 children ranging from 4-15 and they had just lost their dog. A snake had bit him and he died before they could get him to the vet. When I started telling the woman about Jasper & Dudley, she exclaimed, "Our dog's name was Jasper!" She then went on to tell me that they would have the dogs inside quite a bit and they also had 1.5 acres for them to run and play. We really had been feeling guilty lately, almost like we were neglecting the dogs...they needed a bigger yard to run & play and they needed children to play with them! So, after talking on the phone, it seemed like a great fit. In a matter of about 15 minutes, the couple had arrived, met Jasper & Dudley, and fell in love. The woman was loving on them and their tails were wagging back and forth and the man was checking them over. Before I knew it, we were loading up dog food, treats, their bed, and the dogs. They were SO happy...ran and hopped right into their van!
In less than 30 minutes we had received the call, met Jasper & Dudley's new parents, and watched them drive away! Of course, I immediately started crying...after all they had been our babies for EIGHT years (and I'm sure the pregnancy hormones had something to do with it). I knew in my head it was the right thing to do, but my heart was sad. Before they left the told me to keep her number and to call & check on them anytime. Later on in the afternoon, Shelby asked me if I would call them in a few days, to which I responded, "I'm not waiting a few days...I'm calling them tomorrow!" Well, I couldn't wait until tomorrow. I called them last night. The woman was so sweet and told me that Jasper & Dudley were eating it up! They had been in and out with the kids and were playing and having a great time. She said they were all in love with them...YEA! That made me feel so good and I KNEW we had made the right decision.
So, we've already started talking about our plans for our back yard! We really have not been able to use it too much, because the dogs had taken over. We plan to eventually get a new fence, some patio furniture, toys for Georgia & hopefully plant a small garden next year! It will be fun...we will miss Jasper & Dudley, but will enjoy getting to enjoy our yard with our two little girls!
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