I took Gus to my Writing Workshop today and he behaved well, chewing on some rawhide, dozing under the desk, annoying Red.  He was exhausted when he came home, and fell asleep gnawing on his teddy bear.

He has been with us for about eight months, and he was the right dog for us, and he was chosen in what I believe is the right way for me, and for Maria, and for our home an animals.

There are many people who like to tell me and others how to get a dog, this is advice I never want or take. I don’t care what other people tell me what to do, i look inside of my own heart and soul to make choices like that.

My way has worked well for me, I have had a wonderful streak of dogs – Orson, Rose, Lenore, Izzy, Red, Frieda, Gus. It has not always worked out the way I hoped, and there is much luck, good and bad, involved in the process. I have made lots of awful mistakes, and learned a great deal.

I do not believe getting a dog is a moral decision, as so many people do. It is profoundly practical, scientific as well as emotional.

There is no honor for me in bringing a troubled or unhealthy or poorly bred dog in my life, which is, in so many ways, centered around working with dogs and bringing them into places, offices and institutions where complete trust and certainty is required.

In the work I do, there is no tolerance for mistakes.The first mistake the dog makes is the last time they work outside the farm with me. So getting a dog is a complex and prolonged choice, With Gus, the system worked.

I talk my dog life over with my vet, who knows me and my dogs, and who I trust. She knew I was mulling a small dog, mostly because I wanted to learn about them and write about them, and was curious. She knew I had my eye on the Boston Terrier breed, a dog with a lot of spirit, brains and personality.

A new breeder named Robin Gibbons brought her pregnant BT Hannah into the service, and when she saw the puppies, she called me up and said this is your dog, this is what you want. I came down to see the puppy and I thought she was right, so did Maria. She liked the good health of the puppies as well as their demeanor.

We were lucky in that, and also lucky that Robin lives just a couple of miles from us.

Dr. Fariello said Robin had gone a great job, the dogs were grounded and well-bred, and grounded is an important word for me when it comes to dogs. Property bred dogs are grounded, calm, affectionate. They listen, adapt and do not rattle easily.  They are trainable. They are generally healthy.

They do not harm humans or other dogs.

Robin invited us to come and visit Gus regularly in the weeks before he was to come home. We went to see him just about every week, we held him, let us get used to our smell, walked around with him, played with him, touched him all over. We bonded.

The transition to our home was just about flawless. He was housebroken almost instantly, loved being in  his crate at night and when we weren’t  home (I don’t believe in coming home to destroyed or soiled socks, shoes or carpets, that is a bad way to get to know my dog). If he was upset at leaving his home and Mother, he never showed it. He never whined a minute in the crate, or hesitated for a second to rush in when we asked him. And why should he? It was a clean, warm, dry place filled with toys and things to chew on.

Gus loved Red and Fate from the start and took to the farm.  He was happy to walk with us, ride in the car, and he never bothered us or our food while we were eating. He has never been fed human food except by accident, and does not expect to get any.

From the first, he walked alongside of us, and never ran off. He does not need a leash when he walks. He is a farm dog in every way, he has befriended the donkeys, charmed the sheep, adores people,  loves to run in the pasture and try to move the sheep around, like Red does. He can’t, but enjoys pretending and trying.

He responds to his name, he sits and stays and comes, if not instantly,then close. I feel like we lucked out. I also feel like we did the work, we did the due diligence that is at the center of getting the right dog.

We failed in our effort to keep him off of the sofas and chairs, but then, we didn’t try that hard. These dogs believe they are enormous, and also entitled to go anywhere they want. I didn’t see it as worth the fight or being certain of victory.

I don’t feel smug about my dogs, but we did the work it takes to get a good dog.

We bought Gus from a good and ethical breeder who worked hard to ensure health and good temperament and succeeded. We got to know all about the mother and father. We worked with our vet, whose recommended was important to us.

We used the crate from the first, it is the best tool for training and focusing behavior, and allowing a grounded dog to settle and learn how to be still.

We did not treat Gus like an adorable toy, but as a dog, like the other dogs. We rarely pick him up – he can walk and jump, e don’t talk baby talk to him or think of him as a baby.

This has paid off, he can go anywhere in the pasture in safety. He has never threatened or frightened a farm animal, nor does he permit himself to be nosed or pushed out-of-the-way. He adores Fate and Red and wants nothing more than to work with them. He loves to sit on the donkeys backs.

We did not listen to the many people who told us there is only one way to get a dog. They are not our friends, they are people who want to use dogs to make them feel good about themselves. The best way to get a dog is to get the right dog  for you and give him or her the life they deserve.

The dog you truly want, for almost any reason, will be the dog you love and show how to live safely and well in our world.

Gus, like so many small dogs, is a dog of entitlement. Because of his grounding and good breeding, he is confident and alert. He seems at home everywhere – in the car, other houses, the pasture, the house, the yard. He seems to see the world as his home or playground and moves fluidly from one place to another.

He is strong and quite sure of himself.

We worked hard to socialize him and acclimate him to new people and new experience and  that has been successful.

For me, there is no magic to getting a dog, you get as much out of the dog as you put into getting the dog.  I did not get Gus because it made me feel good, Gus makes me feel good because we thought long and hard about how to get him in the right way. That can be done with a good rescue group, a professional shelter, or a good breeder. The only advice I ever give to people about getting a dog is to make sure they get the dog they want, not the dog other people tell them to want.

Tonight, Maria and I talked about Gus and we feel really good about having him. I think we did it in the right way for us, and he is exactly the dog we wanted. And I am loving learning about small dogs and writing about them. That is something that I needed. And I worked hard to get it.