The More The Merrier

You know how you watch TV shows and movies about young couples and they FINALLY get their first apartment together? They’re making their first meal in their new home, unpacking and getting everything set up, and you’re secretly captivated it all. You start thinking about how excited you would be to be living with your significant other and how you would decorate your home and how everything would just be perfect! And of course maybe you think about your first pet together as a couple and how fun and easy it would be to train an animal because it always looks pretty easy on TV. So why wouldn’t it be right?

Now in most of these movies or shows, the couple usually gets a dog. One dog. Singular not plural. However, my significant other and I didn’t plan on being an average couple from a movie and somehow ended up with two huskies, who were five days apart. We sound insane, right? Well, I can tell you it was not planned to have two at once, at least not so close in age. I don't think either of us knew what we were in for but we were excited.

We first started out with Eko. He's what most people would call a red or brown husky — pure breed, beautiful eyes, and as fluffy as can be. He was actually a surprise to me. I was out of town for a week for work and I came home to an adorable sweet furball in our living room as soon as I came inside. I was immediately overjoyed, so much so that I completely threw down my luggage and started to tear up. I had been asking my boyfriend about getting a dog for a good year and now we had one! He was born April 25, 2017, so he was seven weeks old when he got him. We instantly became obsessed.

A couple challenges we faced were challenges we expected: Potty training, crate training, understanding the word "no," etc. However, we were faced with another challenge that we were not expecting. We both work full time jobs and we couldn't just leave our puppy roaming around the apartment. He could defecate everywhere, knock things over, and possibly hurt himself, chew on electrical cords — I mean anything, really. So for the first two weeks, my mom and my boyfriend's mom would watch him while we worked. However it got old because my boyfriend's mom lived 40 minutes away and I would have to drop him off before work on the days that she would watch Eko. Not to mention, they're not available every single day. We soon ordered a crate for him to stay in while we weren't home. But how depressing does that sound? Leaving a puppy in a crate in an empty apartment for roughly six hours a day. Horrible.

About two weeks after having Eko, I had to go to Chicago for a couple days for another business trip. While I was gone, my boyfriend and I were texting and the topic of getting another puppy came up and I jokingly said yes. Why would we get another puppy? Well, logically, dogs are pack animals so it would probably be good for Eko. He would have another dog to play with every single day all the time. So, maybe it wouldn't be a horrible idea, but it just sounded like we were moving too fast. When I return home from Chicago, my boyfriend had still not let the idea go of getting another puppy. We talk about it casually for the next week. On July 2nd, I come home from work after a day of my boyfriend sending me pictures of husky puppies for sale. He sends me a picture of a red/brown and white one like Eko. I said, if we get another husky, I want a different color. Sure enough, 15 minutes later, he finds a black and white female husky for sale about two and a half hours away. He says "Found one! Ask your brother if he can dog-sit Eko." Of course my little brother was more than happy to watch him. We didn't tell anyone we were getting another puppy, so it was kind of fun because everyone was going to be surprised.

Through out our long drive, I kept looking at our future baby girl's picture that the seller provided because I was just so excited. But, I was also very nervous. I mean, we live in an apartment, and we were going to have TWO puppies. That's twice the food, twice the treats, twice the feces, and two vet bills. But all the good things double, too — all the cuddles, belly rubs, silly puppy moments, kisses, everything. Not to mention, Eko was going to have someone to play with, which is why we wanted another puppy. I also immediately fell in love with her name that I picked out for her, Ava. The more I looked at her picture, the more I liked the name. Eko and Ava.

When we finally get to the seller's house. He takes us to his backyard and there were about five puppies running around, all males except for Ava. He brought her to us and she was the sweetest thing. He told us she was very cuddly and very sweet and said that she was pretty chill. I loved her! She was adorable and very clever, so we paid the man and we were on our way.

Ava stayed on my lap the entire car ride, despite trying to sneak into the back seat of course. We stopped and got a collar and leash, which ended up being way too big but we made it work for that night. After a million text messages from my brother asking where I was (It was after midnight), I finally told him we were five minutes away. It was 12:45 and my mom just got home from work and everyone was up: my mom, step dad, brother, sister, and my aunt visiting from New York. I was so excited to show her off. I had my boyfriend stand in front of me while I held Ava in my arms. My mom unlocked her front door and she stopped mid-sentence and just said "oh my god" and started laughing. I come in with our new addition and my brother and sister were so excited. Eko was napping and didn't really care... that is, until I put Ava on the floor. He jumped up and they started sniffing each other. Two seconds that later they got in a fight. No, they were not rough housing. It was a legit fight and we had to pull them apart. Thus, there was challenge we were not expecting.

Puppies are supposed to be cute and playful and love everything but because we had a boy and a girl, Eko was trying to assert his dominance and Ava wasn't having it, which is another thing her breeder said about her. She's sweet but she's dominant. Over the next few days, Ava proved herself to be very scrappy. They both fought over a bone and Ava nipped at Eko's nose, causing it to bleed. The next day, we fed them breakfast. Ava was fed in her crate and Eko was fed in the kitchen. Eko finished first and went over to Ava's crate, which was closed, and tried to stick his little nose through the crate to get her food and somehow they managed to have a huge fight through a crate and she swiped her claws right underneath his eye which also caused him to bleed. Since then, he hasn't really messed with her. Don't get me wrong, she's the sweetest girl and loves everyone and loves to cuddle, but she won't let another dog bully her.

After a few weeks, they became best buds and were just rough housing like normal puppies. They took naps together, drank water together, chewed on our kitchen chairs together, and it was great. However they began to be more hyper which is okay, but they liked to run all around the apartment and jump on the couches and run into the walls. I felt bad because we didn't have a full yard for them to play in. Our apartment had a dog park but they didn't have all their shots yet so they couldn't go in there. We found ways to exert their energy without them tearing up our apartment. We would go on really long walks and sometimes we would run. We would throw their rope toys down the hallway and they would bring them back. On days we weren't working, we went over to my boyfriend's grandma and mom's house because they both had dogs and big yards for them to run in. They love going to grandma's house and playing with the Irish Setters and Samoyeds. Every day we find more things to get their exercise in.

Potty training was a huge obstacle for us. It seemed like Eko learned faster than Ava did but he would still occasionally have accidents. So we started to train them with treats. They were not full on dog bones, they are literally the size of an oyster cracker. Anytime they did their business outside, they got a treat. Again, Eko caught on faster than Ava. They are now six months old and we rarely have accidents. They know to go by the door and whine. But if they do have an accident, we go outside then we come in and they go in their crate for a time out. I hate doing it but they've learned from it.

All in all, while I was nervous about having two puppies at once, I couldn't imagine our everyday life any other way. I love coming home and getting attacked with kisses and excited little barks, Eko demanding belly rubs and Ava just wanting to cuddle. Even though it's only been a few months that we've had them, they have taught me a lot. Definitely more responsibility, how to read them so I know what they need, and unconditional love. I want children one day to pour my love into, but for now Eko and Ava have my heart. So if you're ever wanting to get more than one I say do it! In the long run, you'll be happier.

As they grow, they become smarter, faster, and more playful. They both love to watch TV, run outside, and eat peanut butter. Their Instagram, eko_and_ava_the_huskies keeps their followers up to date on new shenanigans, cute poses, and more. So give us a follow!