We have now been dog owners for just over a whopping two weeks and wanted to give you all an update on how life has changed around here. We feel a lot more settled and are completely smitten with sweet Charly. Chris is constantly telling me Charly is the best dog he's ever come in contact with (he grew up with dogs) and I just nod and smile because I know I lucked out with my first dog being a pretty special, completely trained one. That being said, we have discovered a few things about our fair lady.
Charly snores and it is like unto a train. She has so much girth that it actually rumbles the floor. And, she sleeps a lot! It could be because when she is awake, Greta is chasing her all over or we are on a walk, but really I had no idea dogs slept so much. The very first night, Charly slept in our room on the floor and Chris and I tossed and turned and laughed about how loud her snoring was and then eventually very early in the morning 3am-ish, Chris walked her downstairs to finish her slumber so we could finally get some rest. Since then, we must have gotten used to it because we are both sleeping very soundly even when she is in the room. I discovered if I breathe in and out with the rhythm of her snoring, it's almost hypnotic and puts me right to sleep.
A few of you have asked about all that hair. Fortunately, I grew up with 4 sisters so I am no stranger to massive amounts of hair around the house to clean up, although I haven't quite adjusted to Charly's hair. It's different. It actually, and I hate to say this, makes me lose my appetite. Eeks. In her defense, I have a very weak stomach. We got her groomed and professionally Furminated last week and picked up a FURminator
Charly is a lot more massive than she appears in pictures. Or even when she is laying down. She starts walking toward you and people usually blush and lose their words because they are in shock. She's big! Before we got her a harness leash (we went with the Easy Walk harness
Right now, the back hallway where we made a little mudroom nook way back when is where we keep Charly's stuff along with her food and water bowl. The little leather ottoman is hanging out upstairs for now and we'd love to revamp that nook so it fits Charly's needs a little better. Storage for her food, toys, bones, and treats and a higher food and water bowl. I'm still brainstorming and planning the space but it probably won't come to fruition until after Summer since we're pretty booked with projects as is.
Life with Charly is good. Greta has a companion and I have a new shadow. ;) I'll leave you with a little video illustrating what happens nearly every morning when Greta wakes up. "Where's my dog?" she says, and then this:
Ps. Sorry the photos and video are with my phone. It has a life proof case on it which is great protection for you-know-who but not so great for keeping the quality up in pictures. You can see clearer photos of Charly right here.
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The pictures and video with your little girl are the cutest! Great decision to get such a sweet cuddly dog!
She looks lovely! I always preferred smaller dogs but my boyfriend convinced me to go with a bigger one, and we ended up with a bernese mountain dog. (She's not yet as big as Charly, since she's only 10 months, but let me tell you, she's still huge!) I've completely converted. Love a big gentle soul :)
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Brave of you to "start" with such a big dog! So glad to hear that she is fitting in with you family so well. I had a man tell me his very huge mastiffs only eat like 2 cups a food a day and explained "the better the food (less fillers) the less they eat and the less they poop! LOL
Thank you for the update. I love dogs. :)
haha I totally understand the snoring! We have an english bulldog and his snoring is ridiculous! It doesn't bother me much, because I'm used to hubby snoring, but he thinks it's so annoying and doesn't get any sleep when the dog is in our room at night!
Charlie is a sweet girl!
Btw, are those gold & white polka dot sheets? If so, where did you get them?
Yup! Land of Nod. They're gorgeous.
Aww! She looks like a sweetie! This definitely makes me want to get a dog, AFTER we have a kid or two! :)
Now my two toddlers are running around yelling "oh, Charly!!" Haha!!
And my 3.5yr old pointed out Greta has his favorite paci & he wants his back, (just learning to live without them).
We're secretly adopting a St Bernard/mastiff puppy next month. So nervous, its my first dog. So I'm loving readingyour dog posts. Its giving me a little perspective on life with a furry monster:)
Oh I absolutely love her!! Isn't she just the cutest little puppy! The St Bernard I know is the mellowest dog and a great cuddler. I grew up with dogs and I just love huge big ones the best, they are the sweetest! I've got two Rottweiler mixes now, 80-90 pound babies, I just wanted to mention that I have noticed my dogs tend to eat a lot less and slim down a bit in the summer and in the winter they like to eat more and pack on a few more lbs. (but really who doesn't, ha) So while she doesn't eat a ton now, you may see the food go a little faster as it gets cold, or maybe that's just because I have 2, we go through a lot of food haha. Keep the puppy updates coming, she looks like such a doll!
She's so cute. We have a Great Dane so I totally know what you mean about the size. A Great Dane and a toddler in our small house can make for some interesting times (usually my daughter avoiding the tail whips), but big dogs are usually so gentle and all they want to be is lap dogs anyhow.
Hahaha! Yes! We've already learned we can't tap our knees or she'll try to jump right up.
Get the Dyson Animal - it will change your life. With 2 dogs (big hairy ones, too!) and three cats, I couldn't imagine my life without it.
If your stomach can handle it, vacuum with your current vacuum, then immediately vacuum with the Dyson. It's crazy how much is still left!
I saw a few on our local classifieds. Might have to spring for one!
Awwww. She is beautiful and look how much Greta loves her! You are the best for facing your fears and getting the dog for her anyway. There's nothing like a dog for a kid growing up. I love how huge she is. I am probably one whose backyard is too small for such a big dog though so I will stick with my 80lb rescue lab & lab/GSD mix.
Dogs do tend to sleep a lot during the day/whenever their owners aren't home. Those of us that work at home are just there to see it. The bigger the dog the lazier/sleepier they are too.
Looks like the previous owners fed her a bit too much - make sure you slim her down as extra weight is especially wearing on the joints of the larger breeds.
Oh! How do you know they fed her too much?
I'm not sure how Tracie could tell from the pictures, but our vet told us that you should be able to feel individual ribs easily at a healthy weight. It's hard to tell with all that fur, but dogs should have a "waist" too. Charly is adorable though, what a sweetie!
Chiming in on the fur discussion. We have two dogs, and I adore them, but once we got the second the fur became an issue for me. We finally decided to pick up a Roomba (robotic vacuum). There are models that can be programmed to run automatically once/day and it has done wonders to keep the 'fur bunnies' under control in our house. It was worth every penny, highly recommend it.
That sounds like so much fun. Fun for me, because I wouldn't be vacuuming multiple times a day. Fun for Greta...her and a robot?! I'm looking into it. Thanks, Sam!
Charly looks like a great dog and I am sure that she is very pretective of Greta. Its all about protecting the pack :-)
On a side note, I just wanted to let you know that we love our Miele vacuum, which is great for the dog hair, especially since you can use it on hardwood floors without scratching them as well as on carpet. It's not cheap at $299 (on Amazon) but it is worth every penny. I grew up with dogs and my parents had the same vacuum for 25 years.
Just thought you might like to know. Keep up the great work on your blog.
Oh! Thanks so much. We are definitely in the market for a better vacuum. Ours is just over a year old, but it's just your standard from Costco. Thanks for the rec!
Charly looks like a wonderful dog and a great pal for Greta. I think it's an important experience for a child to grow up with a dog, it teaches them compassion, manners, patience, and responsibility. Or at least I think, I don't have any kids but grew up with a hound dog and she was my best buddy and protector.
Not all dogs sleep that much, at least at the age of 3 so count yourself lucky in that department too! It could also mean Charly is very relaxed with you guys, too. But yes as they get older they sleep A LOT. Unfortunately my two young dogs didn't get this memo yet, le sigh!
Anyway, just want to thank you for rescuing/adopting and so glad things are going well. You will get used to the hair, it will be on everything, it will be in your eyes and mout, all over your clothes, and in weird crazy places like refrigerator drawers or on shelves. Those sticky lint rollers from IKEA work well for quick clean ups, otherwise I just vacuum a lot more.
Yes, an entire cabinet dedicated to lint rollers is quickly becoming the best idea yet.
Brinley "oh mom that dog is big!!! Her name is Charly!! Oh we need to get a big dog like that."
HER SHADOW! That video made me laugh out loud because she IS so big! We had a dalmation growing up and he got to about 80 pounds and we thought that was big! Plus--he had white corse hair that I swear I found still years after he has been gone. Dogs are the best! Keep the videos coming!
(is Greta topless again!?)
Oh dear. She is. Oops!
Charly is darling! My grandparents had a St. Bernard when I was growing up. Such a great dog. You should enter her into Method's Cute Pet Contest. :) http://decorandthedog.blogspot.com/2013/06/methods-cute-pet-contest.html
Oh! Michelle! Maybe I will. Thanks for the head's up. ;)