Happy first birthday, Murphy!

Happy birthday, Murphy!

Murphy Maximus, 1 year old.

Although he came to us in April, Murphy was born on January 15, 2017 in Missouri. Judging from his disdain of the dark, he likely spent his first months in a dark cage. He didn’t sell, so a courageous rescuer snatched him up before his time ran out and brought him to Pottstown, PA. Nearby, a stupid couple in New Jersey searched Petfinder for a Cocker Spaniel pup to fit their sedentary, quiet lifestyle and to be a companion to their sedentary, quiet Ollie. Kismet!

He was nine pounds when we got him. Today he is 43.5 pounds. That puts him 2 pounds larger than Ollie, and 2 inches taller at the shoulder. He’s probably not finished growing yet. Obviously, he is not the Cocker Spaniel we were told we were getting. Murphy loves to drink cold coffee from our mugs. We have learned to put up our mugs when we are finished. He loves to snuffle Hershey’s Kisses out from the bag in the pantry. We moved the bag to a higher shelf. And that’s how it goes with Murphy – we are always struggling to stay one step ahead of him to keep him from killing himself.

His first day. He was so tiny!

Murphy’s Loves:

• Ollie
• WM and me
• His crate
• Kong toys and chew antlers
• “Hunting” through the ivy in our back yard
• Chewing
• Human food
• Watching me practice yoga

List of things Murphy has destroyed/damaged in his first year

• Bathroom
• Leather boot
• Longaberger basket
• 3 quilts
• stairway trim
• 3 teeny beanie babies
• corner of end table
• 2 dog beds
• plastic pitcher
• several rope bones
• silicone dog water bowl
• 2 charging cables
• pencils, numerous
• socks, numerous
• Mom’s checkbook cover
• rolls of paper towel, numerous
• rolls of toilet paper, numerous
• our lawn
• back screen door
• my office chair
• seedlings torn out of backyard flower pots, numerous
• nights of sleep, numerous
• savings account

Reasons why I am happy we have Murphy:

• He has such exuberant joy at every small thing. It’s infectious.
• He is a staunch defender of our little home. No pedestrian, chipmunk, or leaf can pass by our front door without a bark of acknowledgment.
• We have to move more to keep up with him, and to wear him out.
• When he slows down, he is a world-class cuddler
• And this gorgeous pile of shmoo that I get to cuddle with every night

Brothers.

In the spring, I’m going to get him a little agility set and teach him to jump on command. (This won’t work, but blogs/journals are all about intentions!) In the summer, I’m going to set up my classy pool (it’s a $10 pool from Target) and he’s going to have a blast.

Murffles, you’re a good boy. Happy birthday and we can’t wait to see what this year brings!