As I am typing these words at 9:38 AM, Jedi is napping warmly at my feet. His shoulders--snuggled between my ankles. His right, hind paw--resting on my left toes. His body--curled in an oval. His neck lies over my ankle, and he's snoring.

When I met him at the breeder's home, he was wild and very nippy. He ran back and forth from one side of the fence to the other. He jumped incessantly. He tried to bite me every time I reached for him. The breeder told me to hold him in my arms as I sat on a chair, but he was so squirmy that I dropped him! Thankfully, he landed on his side; otherwise, he could have broken a bone. Jedi was the youngest puppy left, out of the ones that were available to take home. Despite his mild craziness, his affection captivated me. He loved to be scratched and loved to lay on top of feet. He looked ready for adventures.

The breeder walked us to my car, and we placed him into a dog carrier. He cried immediately. For almost twenty minutes of driving, he cried and howled riotously. I tried talking, turning up the radio, and petting, but nothing pacified until I sang "Jesus Paid It All." As soon as I sang, his crying turned into a soft whimper. He stopped scratching at the carrier and laid himself down. He quieted himself and fell sound asleep! I did not stop singing until we got home forty minutes later. My mom was happy to see him as I carried him through the front door, even though she wanted no involvement with his maintenance. Immediately he went for the leather shoes, the wooden table legs, and the rugs, and the kitchen hand towels! I told him, "No!" each time he clamped his jaws over any inappropriate objects. The breeder also taught me to push his "lips" into his canines whenever something wrong was in his mouth to force his mouth open.

Above: Jedi sleeps soundly in a crate graciously donated by my friends Leigh Ann and Kevin. I expected a rough night. The breeder expected a rough night, but when I introduced Jedi to his crate full of toys and my old t-shirts, he stepped right in and sat down like he knew it was his bed. I closed the crate door only when I knew he was asleep so that he wouldn't feel imprisoned. Four times he woke up, whined, and pawed at the door, and each time I was able to massage him back to sleep. Between 10 PM last night and 7 AM this morning, I slept a total of six hours, and in that time, he didn't have any potty accidents!

We walked around the block this morning at 8 AM. The breeder warned to not let him walk more than a mile each day, because his joints are not ready for much exercise (his joints are also not ready for jumping and landing, so he must be carried between points of varied elevation). I praised him whenever he peed, which was twice, and gave him a treat (his regular dog food, which he loves). I praised him when he pooped, and again gave him a treat. 

In a few hours, we will have our first vet appointment to check his health and administer some vaccinations. After that, we will be off to Leigh Ann and Kevin's house to meet Jedi's new friends.