The Saturday started off like a normal Saturday. The family was off to the flea market. My last words to them were, “No pets!”
Not even three hours later, I get a text from the husband saying they found a llama they wanted. They couldn’t live without him.
Yes, they were serious.
I shut that down immediately.
A few minutes later, I started getting pictures of German Shepard pups.
Why, God?
I was relieved we had moved past getting a damn llama. I wasn’t feeling the pictures. Each picture, nope.
I was ready to cave. Then, thankfully, the husband texted me all the pups had been sold.
Thank God, I thought.
I looked at Marlee, “Shew, buddy, we dodged a bullet.”
He could have cared less.
A few hours later, after they returned, the husband and I headed out to dinner with some family.
Or so we thought.
Communications broke down, and we somehow ended up in completely different towns for dinner. This was the start of my downfall.
While we were waiting on our table, the husband mentioned his buddy had German Shepards for sale. I shrugged at the picture. He insisted we at least look.
“Just to see,” he said.
“Nah, I am good ,” I said.
“Let’s just look at them. Plus, I haven’t talked to my buddy in a while.”
“Fine,” I said stubbornly.
I was determined to say no to every single puppy I saw.
We pulled in, and I saw no pups anywhere…
The minute I got out of the car, I was swarmed by a litter of puppies.
I quickly started trying to figure out if we could by them all and how we were going to get them home.
The husband chatted with his buddy. I had no clue what they were saying. I was now sitting in the grass, surrounded by happiness.
The husband said, “Well, what do you think?”
They both laughed.
“Let’s start with one,” he said, laughing.
I remembered Marlee.
“We have the worst dog ever. We need the calmest one in th litter,” I said.
That’s when one puppy jumped over the other and starting fighting with another one.
“Umm, not that one. He is acting like Marlee.”
His buddy laughed and pointed to my feet.
Sitting at attention was the biggest puppy I had ever seen, and he was looking straight up at me.
I cautiously picked him up. He put his head on my shoulder.
I was sold, damn it.
As we drove home, he kept his big head on my shoulder, licking and sighing.
Ahh, home.
I called my daughter out to the car. This time. she wouldn’t give the pup back. We started throwing around names.
“Major” came to me.
“Big guy, you like Major?” His tail instantly started wagging.
The minute Marlee saw him, he howled, ran straight to him, and knocked him over. Major retreated to my daughter.
“Okay, Marlee approves. Now for the big ones. Mom and Romeo,” I said.
“Here, you take him. I am not getting in trouble for another dog. Grandma is on the warpath. I am going to tell the boys.”
“Thanks, child,” I said and looked for the husband.
Gone.
My mom is God-fearing and loving. That day, not so much. This time, there were threats of bodily harm and cat-like reflexes.
Romeo instantly noticed Marlee had forgotten about him. He strutted over to Major, sniffed him, huffed and walked off.
Approval.
Marlee was trying to be a good big brother. He was just so excited. Major was just calm.
That night, Marlee slept calmly beside me, and Major slept in my daughter’s room with Romeo.
Major was the perfect puppy. He trained easily and was so loving and gentle. But Marlee was his big brother, so his mischievousness started rubbing off on Major:
- Stealing socks and running away.
- Chasing wildlife.
- Seeing one of the kids, going full steam ahead, and launching himself at them, taking them out.
- Getting on the couch with Mom.
- Not realizing he wasn’t a mini Yorkie and getting stuck under the bed.
Major was a teddy bear more than a protector, or so I thought.
The new problem?
Marlee now had an accomplice.
My daughter and I headed out to run a few quick errands.
Later, I pulled into the driveway and noticed something rectangular and shiny lying there.
My front license plate…
“What the hell?”
Marlee and Major were both sitting on the sidewalk, looking innocent.
My daughter, shocked, then laughed. “Mom, I think your sweet fur angel ripped the license plate off when we pulled out.”
‘No, he didn’t. It must have fallen off,” I said in dismay.
“Mom, check the cameras. You know I am right,” she said, laughing.
Yep. In full HD, the evidence was undeniable.
Marlee pulled the license plate off in one swift movement as I pulled out. He dropped it and ran off. A minute later, Major came over, sniffed it, looked around and bolted.
Major sat watching the camera footage with us, looking guilty.
“Major, you just let him do it? I can’t believe you did that,” my daughter said, laughing.
My mom was cracking up. “Dani, I told you that dog was a handful. But that was hilarious. Major was the lookout while he did it. Proves my point about them both.”
“Mom, hush,” I said, laughing.
Months later, Major had grown a lot and now had a more menacing look to him.
Outside playing, he went straight to attention-ears up, teeth bared, and not moving. Then, all of a sudden, like a bolt of lighting, he took off toward the front yard.
I chased after him.
I see the shady neighbor hopping back over the ditch to the road running off. Major was standing there barking angrily and bearing his teeth.
“Good boy, Major. Heel, it is safe now.”
Major instantly calmed down and wagged his tail. I gave him a quick hug. My daughter came running up.
“What was that all about?”
“I think the shady neighbor down the road just tried to come into the yard, and Major sensed his intentions and stopped him.”
His shenanigans were always calm compared to Marlee.
Or so I thought…
Until I came back from the tropics.
God, I missed them.
In the end, it was clear the husband didn’t want anything to do with them when he left. They had always been my boys.
Thankfully, someone I didn’t realized loved them as much as I did stepped in where he wouldn’t or couldn’t take care of them.
However, I can tell they let Major get away with entirely too much.
They still go crazy when they visit.
Pretty sure the boys love them more than me.
As they should.
