When we got Bella, we knew we wanted a dog that wouldn't be a constant reminder of Beau. It wouldn't be fair to any dog we brought into the house for us to have expectations of behavior based on appearance and breed stereotypes. So to help in that endeavor, instead of an extra-large, yellow male Lab, we chose a (supposed to be) medium-sized, black mixed-breed female.
We were perhaps a bit naive to think our assumptions for her character wouldn't still be colored by our life with Beau or that we wouldn't make comparisons between the two dogs regardless of how different we
wanted them to be. And oh, they are different. Allow me to offer some highlights:
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| Beau |
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| Bella |
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| Mellow couch potato, not your typical Lab. Enough energy to keep up with you but not so much as to wear you down. | Boundless energy. If Bella's energy had a breed, I'd suggest Border Collie and Basenji with a side of Jack Russell. |
| Protects wildlife. (See baby bunny story.) Gentle and trustworthy with cats and children. | Would eat wildlife if she could catch it and someday will manage to climb a tree in her efforts to catch marauding squirrels. (Let's not talk about cats or children...) |
| Obedient but not much of a 'thinker'. Upon finding himself tangled with his leash among the trees, Beau would sit down and wait patiently for us to come get him out. | Obedience is not her forte but Bella could rival Decartes in the 'I think' arena. She can untangle herself from the most complicated web of long-leads and shrubbery while solving the mysteries of the cosmos and be home in time for dinner. |
| The strong, silent type. When Beau growled, you knew something was very, very wrong. | Bella never. shuts. up. She whines, she whimpers, she mumbles, she moans. And oh yes, she barks. She has an opinion about everything and isn't afraid to express it. |
| The UPS guys used to leave dog biscuits for Beau on our package deliveries during the Christmas season. | The UPS guys throw our packages up on the porch from about 15 feet away if at all possible. (While she acts and sounds like Cujo, little do they know a well-placed "boo" would send her running for cover.) |
| Stoic: I once watched Beau run full speed and headlong into a boulder, bounce off, shake his head and continue chasing his tennis ball with nary a pause. | Drama queen: Bella bumped her shoulder on the bedpost once when she wasn't paying attention. From the blood-curdling scream and the limping, I thought she had broken a leg. (She hadn't.) |
| Physical health issues. | Mental health issues. |
| Regularly checked-in when walking off-leash. | Check-in? What's a check-in? Wait, what's this "off-leash" business, sparky? |
| Constant companion. | Eternally independent. |
| Loved to lie in the sun while I worked in the garden. | Loves to get into endless mischief while I try to work in the garden. |
| Loved going to the vet's office. | Loves leaving the vet's office. |
| Would sit for hours getting brushed. | Hasn't sat still for hours - ever. |
| Loved everybody, got along with everyone. | Afraid of everybody, gets along with few. |
| Sweet, goofy and the love of my life. | Sweet, goofy and the love of our lives. |
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