My family decided to adopt a puppy a little over a week ago from the SPCA. Her name is Rey, she's a mix of a pit bull and some other breeds we don't know quite yet, and she is 9 weeks old now. This is a huge lifestyle change for our family. We’ve had cats for the past 13 or 14 years, and we’ve also had fish. All of these pets are relatively easy to take care of, but a puppy is definitely different. She was sitting on my lap napping and I decided that I should write about my own experience with her so far.

1. Outside

I can only imagine that when we ask if she wants to go outside, she’s either very excited or not so happy about it. Sometimes she’s very happy outside and other times she just lays in the grass and enjoys the sun. She does like to chew on her lead and tries to attack the stake we have in the yard. It’s kind of funny when she runs into it.

2. Food!!!

When I put the food bowl down for her, she rushes over and starts to chow down. I think food is probably the best part of her day! She almost always finishes her food and is actually not too messy when she eats.

3. Crate

Sometimes we put her in the crate. We'll do this when we can’t take her where we’re going or when it’s bed time. She cries a ton, but my mom said it’s like a baby, sometimes you just have to leave her, let her cry, and let her fall asleep on her own. We've had some incidences inside the crate, but she'll learn!

4. Potty

We’ve had many incidents in the house where she will pee or poop. We take her outside immediately after to try and help associate that going to the bathroom means going to the bathroom outside, not in the house. When she does go outside, we give her a treat and say, “Good girl, Rey! Good pee!” or something silly like that. The things you say to your dog…

5. Naps

Our puppy really likes to nap. A lot. She loves to bury her face in the corners of the couch or climb into your lap and cuddle with you. She also twitches a lot when she sleeps, which I imagine is her dreaming…

6. Play

She really likes to play. She seems a little rambunctious at times, but it’s just because she’s a puppy! We bought her a ton of toys at the pet store - it almost looked like we were spoiling her! When she gets going, she gets very excited, but then it’s just easier to wear her out later!

7. Other Pets

Rey really wants to play with our kitten, who’s about a year old now. The kitten does not like this very much. She’s constantly stalking Rey or running away from her. She keeps trying to get the kitten to play, but she just isn’t having it. Our older cats won't even come downstairs sometimes! But they'll get used to her...I think.

8. Other People

A lot of people have been coming up to us and asking what kind of dog she is, how big she’ll be, how old she is, and when we got her. We took her to my sister’s color guard rehearsal and a ton of the girls gathered around her and she was running around saying hi to everyone and loving the attention.

9. Biting

As we all know, babies have teeth that grow and they need things to chew on. This is no different with puppies. Rey really likes to bite and chew. This is something I'm struggling with a lot. I'm getting used to it, and I think she'll get used to not biting soon.

10. Furniture

And by furniture, I mean everything in the house. And she likes to play with all of it. I came into the living room the other night and found her pulling on the cord for the lamp and the lamp almost fell over! She also begs to be let up onto the couch. She whines until we pick her up and put her next to us.

11. Cuteness

Rey is the cutest puppy I have seen. Ever. She’s so sweet and I know that someday she’s going to be a good dog.