We arrived filled with mixed emotions.

We met Mrs. Alpha and her husband, and they were lovely.  As Caeser Millan would say ‘calm and assertive’.  They were leaders, and the depth of passion Mrs. Alpha had for the breed was evident.  Her features were Dobermann – like!

We met the maternal grandmother of our soon to be puppy, an 8 year old playful girl in mint condition.  She ran out and bowed down on her front legs as an invitation to play!

The suspense was killing me at this time……..all I wanted was to see my puppy!!!!!!!!  But patience is a virtue and looking back they were building our expectations, creating the scene.

Grandma went back into the kennel and out came little Versace.  He zoomed over to Mr. T (he was closest!) and rolled over.  Then he ran to me and literally jumped into my arms!  I scooped him up, we held a gaze and Mr. T approached, our eyes twinkled…..we had become a family!

And everything was in the right place……no deformities!!  A gorgeous little puppy that rivaled any that we had seen on the net.

We spent the next hour or two learning how to care for him, all the supplements we needed, etc.  The Alpha’s had provided everything we needed to ‘set up shop’ with our puppy – supplements, a large crate, fluffy to sleep on (called dry bed), and a list of goodies to get for him.

Then came the alpha roll!

We were told that in the event we didn’t follow instructions to the letter, for example with the correct amount of calcium, his little paws wouldn’t form properly and that would be a sign to any person ‘in the know’ that we were not taking care of him well. There would be other tell-tale signs that we didn’t care enough to follow her instructions….. we must not deviate from them or we will be doomed……terrible neglectful parents…….bring shame upon the Dobermann community……and her dogs in particular!  We would be a living walking transparent advertisement, big brother was watching. One dobermann could make or break!

I surrendered immediately, my body going limp in agreement. The fear of God (though not religious) had been thrust into me.

I was put in my place.

Being mostly vegetarian (select seafood eater), I thought that tinned food and dry dog food was nutritionally balanced and easy to feed.  HELL no.  Must follow her advice to the letter and call to give updates on his progress.

In our eyes she was the Alpha of the Dobermann world (she really was though!), and all owners have a similar thing for their breeder.  Their breeder is the best because……….but ours was the best.

So we set off terrified of doing the wrong thing, but determined to make her proud.

But were we prepared?!

Ms. S