A vizsla is a very high energy dog. We did a lot of reading on the breed, fortunately fell into finding a great breeder who took the time to give us the low down on the breed, what to expect and how to train. His advice and guidance has helped us to raise not only a Princess of a dog but a Protector as well.
A vizsla is not for everyone, you need to make sure you have adequate time to spend with your dog, to exercise and train. They have lots of energy and need to unleash this energy, but they are also extremely intelligent dogs that need to continually have brain stimulation. You need to have patience, which by the way, is not my strongest character trait. Probably ranks on the lower 1/3 of my personal character traits. Which is why it has been a godsend to have the breeder as a FB friend, so he can give me a pointer or two when he senses my frustration. Early on I was wondering if we had made a mistake because she was so active, and I was worried that once I started back at work full time she'd go stir crazy; however, we found a great outlet in a local doggie day care center. She plays hard all day so by the time we get to see her she's exhausted and well behaved.
We are also very lucky that we have wonderful neighbors that live behind us. Their dog and Loula are best friends. They play well together and the friendship between them is precious. Nothing is cuter than seeing Loula look out the back window and her friend Lilly looking out her back window and you can tell they can see each other, especially when Loula runs to the door asking to go out. We have a gate between our yards because our kids are good friends, and this allows them to easily come play in each other's backyard. And both sets of parents can keep an eye on all the kids too. We let the dogs play and they play hard but respectfully. It has been so nice to see this friendship develop between these two dogs.
I've had a couple of dogs in my life. A Brittany Spaniel that captured the heart of my father to the point that he would never get another dog after her because the heartache of putting her down was too much for him. She was 10 years old and a myriad of issues that would have cost an arm and a leg to figure out and if correctable too costly to fix. We agonized over this decision, my parents and I - but after speaking to a doctor during one of my annual exams; he recommended that putting her down was in the best interest of the dog from his medical perspective. Her quality of life was on the decline and suggested we let her go before she had to suffer. I respect that doctor to this very day because not many doctors take the time to speak to their patients to get to know what is going on in their heart and head before examining them. His medical insight made this decision a little easier, but not less painful for sure.
I had to watch my husband, who was my fiance at the time, put down his beagle. A dog that was so sweet, sincere and full of so much love that even though he could be a little pain in the arse, his lovability trumped everything. He was the sickest dog I had ever seen. My husband tried so many different treatments to make him better, but in the end he was too sick to cure. I suggested that he buy his best furry friend a nice juicy steak dinner and let him enjoy his first and only table scrap and I'd take a day off of work to go with him to put his beagle out of his suffering. It was the hardest thing to witness but it was, for this situation, the right thing to do. For weeks the little guy wouldn't eat food and my hubby called me the night before we laid him to rest and told me he feasted for sure on the steak dinner.
If you've read my blog from the beginning, you probably already read about Zoey. Zoey was the answer to my first miscarriage. She replaced physical properties of the baby that I lost. So she was very much a special dog to me. She was my best friend and I can go on and on about her and the type of dog she was. She lived a short 5 years and 362 days. She was a black lab that had the biggest heart of any dog I had known. She got me through thick and thin and took my frustration on life like a true friend, she was my rock.
So, I came into this Loula Mae relationship with some reservation. I thought I was over the "mourning" period with the loss of Zoey but I wasn't. Zoey was a much different dog then Loula. Zoey was a gentle, calm giant. Loula is a needy, fiery redhead! Opposite ends of the spectrum.
Over the last two months, I've seen a change in Loula Mae. She is maturing from the Diva to a Protector. She's not so self-absorbed anymore. She's become a very keen watch dog, making sure her people are safe. Although I hope never to see it put to use, I'm confident that if someone was attempting to harm any one of us, she'd come to our aid instantly and fight for our safety.
She loves each and every one of us. She shares snuggle time with all of us as equally as possible. She loves the kids, and to watch that relationship bloom is incredible. When the kids give her attention, she smiles and wags her tail with so much enthusiasm.
She has truly become one of us! I've been able to open my heart again - she has proven without any doubt that she is an outstanding dog.
Viszlas are not for everyone - you have to want to spend time with the dog, getting to know what makes the dog "tick", you need to make time to help the dog unleash its energy, and at the end of the day - you need to open up at least your couch to let the dog snuggle up close to you!
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