By Joe Darby

Well, folks, I promised in my column a couple of weeks ago to keep you informed about our coming adoption of a pup from Hope for Paws. And I think there’s some neat things to tell you about what’s happened.

Mary and I are now the official owners, or human companions if you will, of a terrific little 12-pound bundle of love and energy. She’s described as a poodle mix and she very well may have poodle in her because of her very curly hair. She is what some would refer to as a Heinz 57, because she has maybe 57 varieties of pooch in her

But her DNA background is not really important. Her loving personality is her most salient feature. More on that later. And her energy is rather astounding too. Her foster mom Carla Salard thinks she might have some Jack Russell in her and everybody knows how much energy those little fellows have.

It’s not every dog that has such a loving personality. Woah. Just as I finished the previous sentence, sitting and writing on my computer, she jumped into my lap. In fear that she might start walking over the keyboard and creating something that might look like this — e8hs,pt2,90k — I had to put her down.

So, where was I. Oh yes. Carla had named her Sadie, a perfectly good name. But we wanted to give her a name that indicated our feelings for her and we came up with Baby. It is very fitting because she sometimes acts like a baby and also because, when pronounced, Baby sounds like Sadie, so she should not be confused when we call her.

For the first hour or so after Carla dropped her off at our house last week, she cried for her departed “Mama.” And that was fine, because it showed she has loving feelings for us human folk.

But after she started to settle in, she showed what an affectionate pooch she really is. She was seemingly careful to show that she loved us both. She would spend about 10 minutes in Mary’s lap, as they sat in Mary’s green chair, then she would hop over to me on the couch, giving me about the same amount of time. She is certainly an equal opportunity dog!

Then we started to play with her, using a little squeaky toy that Karla had left with us. When I threw the little toy across the room, she ran top speed to retrieve it, skidding a few feet on the floor after grabbing it, then showed her mountain goat-like agility by jumping from couch to couch to chair, walking precariously along the top of the backrests. Once I caught up with Baby I tried to take the toy but she gave me a friendly growl and gripped it like a bulldog. Then, like her ancestor wolves did, trying to break the neck of their prey, Baby shook the toy from side to side, so fast that her little head was a blur.

She has had a couple of little “accidents” in the house, but we think that’s because she is just settling in to a new environment. She handles pretty well on a leash, only pulling a little when taken on a short walk. And she loves our big back yard and is sometimes reluctant to come inside when we call her. An offer of a treat after she goes out seems to be curing that problem.

So, here we are, with Baby, a precious little animal that we hope to cherish and enjoy for years to come. Like I said, she is just a little ball of love.

Mary and I went out to eat on New Year’s Eve afternoon. When we came home, Baby was nowhere in the house. We frantically searched every room. No dog. Panic. Fear. Both doors were locked and she was definitely inside when we left. Did someone come in, take her then lock the door behind them? Not very likely.

So we go outside to look for her in the neighborhood, although it bends reality to think she could have left the house. I look back at our house and there she is. She’s sitting on a window ledge, between the glass and the curtain, looking out at me as if to say , “Hey, what are you doing out there.”

The rascal had to have heard our voices when we were searching for her. Maybe this was her way of getting back at us for leaving her alone. Hang on, I said to Mary, having Baby is going to be an interesting ride.