The first girl born, Payton was the smallest puppy in the litter. She says she may look dainty, and
have meltingly beautiful eyes, but she is feisty and didn't let the bigger kids give her any guff. She was
also very fierce with the stuffed toys...and the duck wings...and she loves to swim. She has gone to her
new home in Oklahoma City, where she joins her older half-sister Lis from Hilfy's first litter. She
will be the special companion for the Walker's son Grayson, who was working and not able to make the trip to pick her up.
News about Payton
September 3 2008:
Not unlike children, a puppy left alone for only moments can get in some rather
odd predicaments! Mackenzie and I were around the corner in the kitchen
looking at pictures from her birthday party on the computer when I heard one
of the little stone figurines by the lamp fall over. When we came around
the corner we found Payton on the table. How she made it past the coffee
cup and candle holder without knocking anything off I will never know.
Notice the empty treat jar with the purple lid - do we think she is that
smart???? Probably....
She is the most precious thing - really looks like a gangly teenager at this
point. Really is stretched on her body and legs are really long, paws
gigantic. The hair on her tail is unwinding and looks like maybe a little
wave coming up on her back.
We nicknamed her Thumper for a while - she was really scratching a lot and
her little belly looked dirty (even after her bath) so took her to the vet
and he said she had a case of puppy pyroderma (skin allergies). On
antibiotics and it has cleared up.
I am wishing I remembered how long it took Lis to sleep through the night -
Payton wakes up between 4 and 5 am regardless of what time she crashes. We
took her on a long walk with Lis last nite and I was surprised she made it.
Thought maybe she'd crash for longer but it was 4:13 when she needed to go out
this morning. Sometimes she will go right back to sleep and sometimes she is ready to
rally.
Only problem I am having is that Lis destroys all of Payton's cute little
chew toys - she is disinterested in her own which is ok because Payton loves
them. Lis and Payton provide comic relief about 6 a.m. and again about 10
p.m. when we have the All Star Wrestling Match and Puppy Frenzy all rolled
into one. Payton just pounces on Lis, bites her, steals a toy and then
takes off running - she ducks under the kitchen table, behind her crate then
runs around my island in a circle and retreats again under a chair so Lis
can't get her. I'm not sure what she will do when she won't fit. Lis
remains her sweet self altho I think she misses chillin' with me in the
morning. She doesn't wake up with quite as much energy as Little Bit.
Again, a wonderful choice of puppies for us. Everyone here just cracks up
that we now have 2 dogs when we had none for so long. I can't imagine life
without them. They are really such precious gifts. Thanks for sharing your
canine family with us!
Payton climbed onto the table all by herself -- oh great!
July 28, 2008:
We made it!!! All in all we had a good trip
home - a few 'flow throughs' as you called them - about the time Payton
would wake up and I would pull off at the next exit she would squat - we had
a pad and towels in the car just in case. I don't think Mac slept much last
nite - we took the crate into the hotel but Payton really didn't like it
much - no surprise. Didn't want to let her cry in the hotel so she cuddled with
Mac and Lis on the bed. Mac was sweet to let me sleep since I did all the
driving today.
Lis had a very nonchalant attitude
about Payton the whole trip but was a little jealous we could tell. She
barked at her a couple times when we got home when Payton grabbed her toy
and got up on her hind legs to drink Lis's water and try to eat her food.
Lis of course retaliated by heading for Payton's food and water bowl. This
should be fun! Payton has already decided the fringe on my kitchen rugs looks
great - so the distraction technique will be huge! Payton is truly a sweet, precious puppy - thank you!
Baby Pictures
Payton with new owners Jill and Mackenzie Walker, 7/27/08. Other dogs in picture, left to right: the Walkers' Lis (our Penny's
littermate), Penny, and mama Hilfy.
