As I mentioned a couple of days ago, Gus’s mother, Hannah, is in heat, and Gus’s breeder, Robin Gibbons wants to breed her once more time. We have asked to get a dog from the litter, and Robin has agreed. So we’re on track for another puppy, if all goes well.

Gus died a couple of months ago, and he is helping one of our gardens grow. We are ready.

Getting a new dog is a familiar and cherish ritual for me. First, there are the people lining up to tell me how to get a  dog, these would be strangers trawling the Internet to tell other people what to do. “Adopt!,” was one cryptic message on my Facebook Page the other day. “Drink Milk!,” I answered. She fled.

Since we are getting the same breed from the same breeder and using the same vet and living in the same town things will be simplified. Dr. Fariello is right down the street, and so is Robin, we can visit Hannah’s pups as often as we wish. We have saved Gus’s crate and toys.

All we need is some fresh puppy food.

One person e-mailed me to say she thought it was unethical to get a dog because I am  70 years old and might well die before the puppy. I find that an absurd ethical idea. Older people can be wonderful pet owners, they can easily arrange for someone to care for their dogs if and when they die, it happens all the time.

And Maria is a good deal younger than I am, the dog is quite unlikely to outlive her. I do believe dogs are healthy, for many reasons, from walking and exercise to stimulation to fun and companionship. They take good care of me and I take good care of them.

Gus was a wonderful dog, we loved him and wanted to try another Boston Terrier. I want to finish the journey we started with Gus, to learn about the small dog, learn more about training and attachment.

But this is a different new dog experience. In a way, I see it as a resumption of something that was interrupted, but that could be unfair to the new dog. He or she, if they are born at all, will not be Gus, they will be a different dog.

Maria and I both were a bit worried that we would carry over some of the worry and sadness from the Gus experience and be over-cautious or protective of the new puppy. i don’t want to do that, I hope to shed those feelings and start fresh. We don’t really have any idea what caused Gus’s megaesophagus, so it’s hard not to be concerned that we might be repeating it.

All of the research I did – and it was a lot – says it is very rare in the BT breed, and not common at all. We just don’t know what caused it. So we will just move forward and treat the new dog the same way we treated Gus.

I am pleased that we make our own decisions, and are not affected  by what others tell us to do. They are not our friends, or acting out of our best interests. As always, I believe the best way to get a dog is to get the dog I want, not the dog other people tell me to get.

Getting a dog, especially a puppy, is a joy.

We still want the new puppy to be part of our lives, get to know the farm animals, be at home in the pasture.  He or she will spend time with me when I write and Maria when she works, he or she will walk in the woods with us and drive around with us. Our dogs are very rarely alone for more than a couple of hours.

We will crate train the new dog, and I will do my basic obedience and calming training. Our farm is a very good place to be a dog, and with any luck, the puppy will be here for the October Open House, along with Ed Gulley and his art and Mary Kellogg and her new book of poems.

Gus adapted well to the farm and winter, we’ll see how hardy this new dog is. I suppose what I’m saying is I want to make sure I don’t see this new dog as Gus reincarnated. He or she will be different, and that should be respected. Gus didn’t want or need sweaters, this dog might.

Otherwise, we are already prepared. I’ll wait to hear from Robin that the breeding took and then hope that Hannah has some healthy and happy babies, just as she did the last time.

When we heard the news, we both were so happy we realized this is something we need. Can’t wait.