The original Belgian Tervuren breeder, Michelle, from Sky Acres, who I had contacted a year or so ago, reached out to me in the last week of March 2020, to let me know that she had a five month old Tervuren puppy looking for a home. She called her, “Miss Piggy” because this little girl was very good motivated- which for me as an amateur dog trainer who prefers positive reinforcement techniques, felt right. Michelle also stated that “Missy Piggy” (a name I am not fond of) was really calm for a Belgian Tervuren puppy.

I’ve been dreaming of a Belgian Tervuren puppy ever since I met one while working at Saturday Market for Christopher Creathe, a friend of mine and a phenominal fantastical PNW artist. A tall, older black man came up to me with what looked like this German Shepherd mix, all lion’s mane and kitten feet, and he showed me his pencil drawings in his phone(back when we could stand closer than 6 feet apart without fear of dying.). I did my best to pay attention to his art work- but his dog was just captivating. She played with the shadows peeling across the concrete and I goofed off with her- feeling as if I was in the presence of a kitten goddess deciding to take a canine form.

Heather, from Mysterious Others, another delightful multi-media artist, and a friend of mine (I hope), saw me playing with her, and while I tattooed Heather with her garden flowers, we talked about how she saw me falling in love with the breed that day. She was right.

A burning need for a puppy had been coursing through my body for the last three or four years at this stage. I knew I didn’t want a baby, baby, because I was still watching Calvin, my nephew, during March of 2020.

I checked in with my roommates, Darcy and Melinda, and asked my very new Girlfriend if she would be willing to do the morning shifts with the puppy. I was working 7-3pm, and she was working 2-10pm, and we all agreed, and then D (Darcy) and I set off, in D’s adventure van, to meet the Mysterious “Miss Piggy”.

Cuties who don’t even know what’s in store for them yet.

Roadtrip! To meet (and take home) Dirt’s, undesired by him, new baby sister.

D, Dirt and I, drove out to meet “Miss Piggy” who quickly became Little Miss, in the countryside of the Dalles.

I hadn’t been outside of my house except to walk Dirt, and see Calvin, my nephew in months. The Great Quarantine of 2020 had left me adhering to appropriate CDC guidelines.

I specifically hadn’t gone anywhere on an adventure since driving B(my now ex-wife) to New Orleans in January of 2020. Driving two hours into the countryside, totally felt like a much needed adventure. D did the driving, which was much appreciated, and I dreamed of our little golden ball of pirate’s treasure.

I specifically brought D, because D was the most trepiacious of the lot, when it came to adding a new puppy to our little family space.

We met Michelle, in her driveway, masks on, and then Michelle went and brought up a tiny puppy crew of gorgeousness into this large fenced kennel yard. The space was about 75 feet to 200 feet, obviously where the puppies played when they didn’t stay in their current residence- the outside puppy kennels. It was clean, and Michelle stayed on top of their poop very casually the entire time we were there. I didn’t feel like she was putting on a good face for me- I felt like this was exactly how she was, which calmed my feelings of nervousness at buying a 5 month old puppy, who was under socialized by the reality of Quarantine.

D liked her. I was actually, more curious than expected. I tested out her temperament, I allowed her to interact with Dirt- who she was actually scared of, and I saw his little chest puff up in annoyance, and pride.

Michelle, D and I agreed that she was the right puppy. It was obvious somehow, probably because she’s brought the other two out to meet us- and they were both very Belgian- wary of strangers, barky and unresponsive to snacks from the hands of people they didn’t know. Little Miss was gregarious, hilarious and absolutely delighted by both me, my epic foo-fur coat (see in the above photos) and Darcy. That mattered to me.

I turned around at one point, and there she was, snuggled happily up to D’s legs. I swooned there. I knew that my personality needed a dog that wanted to be around people, who wanted to interact with other dogs, and who wanted to do things all the time. I am exceedingly friendly and I care deeply about people, and I needed a match in my dog heart.

Me feeling crazy stoked and totally in love.

Michelle and I signed the papers for a co-ownership process and she let me do a down payment on the baby, because of Covid-19 and the Great Quarantine of 2020, and then, we loaded her up into the crate and off we went.

Little Miss became her moniker for the next few days until we decided on her actual name, and D and I talked about what we needed to do when we got home, and expectations around the puppers, and some useful roommate strategies.

She did great in the kennel for the first couple of hours on the drive back home, but then, when I made the mistake of saying, “I’m hungry, let’s stop for burritos, and I’ll buy you one for driving” Little Miss pooped herself in the last five minutes, and then D, being in distress from the poop smell- because it lingered, even though I scooped as much out as I could at the Burritto takeout place, turned abruptly, while we were on Lombard.

The van turn rolled her now poop smeared cage, and the Puppy vomited her treats right up and poop and vomit were everywhere. But wow. Life is life.

We got her home and I wiped her all up, just in time to see D grab the crate out of the van, carry down our dangerous back walk way and begin spraying it out. (Dreamboat roommates I have. Seriously.)

Little Miss on her first day home, grateful to be de-pooped and rolling in the grass with toys to attack.

D helped me set up the backyard for Little Miss using their tools to build me a second safer gate, bringing me towels to clean up the poop, and bringing toys outside so Little Miss could explore her current environment.

I finished washing and wiping out her crate, and spent the next three days off work interacting with her, and then- Stephanie Marvel and I found her true name. The one that would stick.

I knew I bought her for work as my Witch’s Familiar, because B still had Martini, my last one, and while I didn’t in any way want Martini back- because she turned very nasty in the last few years of life, but my heart was, and still is, months later (at the end of December 2020) when I’m writing this story, broken over missing both of them, and the Magic I Need in my life.

Que the next 6 months of dog obsession, massive puppy training, constant outdoors activity and a set of frustrated roommates and girlfriend, because I literally couldn’t talk about anything except Little Miss for the entire next 6 months.

Stay tuned for the next post about her true name! I’m excited to see what I write about the Great Quarantine of 2020, since as the year draws to a close, my mind is resonating with story concepts in a way that I couldn’t even touch during my attempted Nanaowrimo of 2020.