The Yelton family is growing, once again. This time, it’s a fur baby! Meet Murphy who joined us on St. Patrick’s Day of this year. He is a mini-schnoodle {schnauzer/poodle} and while he is only 4.5lbs right now, he’s expected to grow between 13 and 16lbs.
The boys have been begging for a furry friend for years, but we’ve been hesitant for a number of reasons. First, the boys both have allergies. Secondly, we’re a family that’s always on the go. When “puppy talk” began to fill the house last November, I left the ball in Mark’s court. After all, he tends to be a little more rational about these sorts of decisions. As for me, I see a puppy, my heart melts, and I want to take the whole litter home. I mean, who wouldn’t?!
After careful consideration Mark came up with a plan. To combat the allergy issue we would find a puppy that was hypoallergenic. Check! As far as our crazy schedule we decided that we would bring Murphy to the store from time to time to help socialize him. Once he gets a little bit older we are hoping that he will be trained well enough to visit nursing homes and hospice patients.
We’ve got some big goals, we know, but in the end I think Murphy will be a wonderful addition to the family. Just two weeks in we can tell he’s already a rock star. He’s 80% potty trained and he’s already learned a couple of commands including “sit”, and “lay”. Now the boys have him working on, “paw”. His favorite toys are his whiffle ball and his Kong bear, thanks to one of our amazing customers.
The major challenge we have so far is sleeping. He doesn’t love being in his crate at night and makes it known. If you have any tips, or know of any amazing dog trainers in the area let us know! We’re all ears.
Over the next few months, we know there will be ups, downs, and all-arounds. For now, we’re just enjoying getting to know our little fur baby. It’s hard to believe that something this small can bring so much love and joy into a family. We’re so blessed! As long as he stays away from my shoes, that is …
The Jeweler's Wife 
He is absolutely adorable x3! We probably broke the rules but we moved the crate into our room located at the foot of the bed. Finally there was sleep.
Our next trick was to hang small jingle bells on a leather lace around the door long enough for Trey to jingle to assist in potty training. Before we would go out the door, we would pause and ring the bells with the phrase “let”s potty” and give a small treat. He caught on pretty quickly and the bells would get our attention when we were not looking. Here we are 10 years later and if we aren’t near he will ring the bells!
Thanks for the tips! Murphy quickly figured out the bell but, is not using it just to get outside…he’s too smart 🙂
We have started using Lavender essential oils at night and he sleeps like a baby now!!!!!
Keep the tips coming!!!!