We weren’t going to get another dog. Not now. Not for a few years, at the least. I wanted to, desperately, because home isn’t home without a dog.

But we weren’t going to get another dog. The expense, the inconvenience, the emotional toll when the end came again—

No. Definitely not another dog. Not yet.

Daisy died on a Wednesday. Fast forward two terribly grey days to Friday afternoon. It was raining, of course, as it had been since Wednesday. The sky hung heavy and dark.

‘So I was thinking,’ said Household Member #1, hesitantly, as we dried up the dishes.

‘Yes?’

‘Oh, nothing really. Just…’

‘Yes?’

‘Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea if we… you know… thought about…’

‘YES! I thought you’d never say it. Not that I’ve spent the last hour crying over boxer pup pictures, oh no.’

’...Me either.’

So we decided on what we’d known all along: expense, inconvenience and inevitable death really aren’t terribly compelling reasons to live a dog-free life. Not for us, anyway.

After lots of research we regretfully decided that perhaps another boxer isn’t the best idea: Daisy was a dainty little runt-of-the-litter fluke; we’d always be comparing Boxer no. 2 with our rose-tinted memories.

Cue more research. Beagles? Lovely, gorgeous personalities but unstoppable roamers. Dalmatians? Household Member #2 dislikes the spots (he’s just That Sort of Person). Labradors? Too rambunctious, and too big. Spaniels? Too much grooming. Standard poodles? Again, grooming and size.

It was starting to get a bit overwhelming. We wanted a small to medium dog dog with what breeders, I’ve discovered, refer to as “personality plus!”. Not a yappy terrier. Not a primpish poodle. Not a roamer. Not a food-guzzling galloper.

‘I have a friend who has a miniature schnauzer…’ I said doubtfully, as we scrolled through the Dogzonline.com.au breed list for the twenty eighth time.

And that was it. After all our searching, an hour later we knew we’d found the breed for us.

So last weekend, we set off on a mammoth car trip and put a deposit on a little bundle of fluff called Penny. On June 4th, assuming all goes to plan, we’ll bring her home.

I can’t wait. I miss my four-legged bundle of happiness, and while she won’t be a Daisy replacement, she’ll be a dog replacement. And I need a dog replacement.

Over the next few months I plan on keeping a regular record here of life with Penny the Puppy. It’s been twelve years since I’ve lived with a puppy and I feel rather as if I’m approaching the start-line of a perilous, newspaper-lined obstacle course.

I hope people reading this over the weeks and months will chime in with oodles of advice and thoughts and cunning tricks; one of my favourite things about living with dogs is how they bring us humans together, whether it’s walking around the lake or sharing thoughts online. I love hearing about other people’s dogs – and I hope you’ll enjoy reading about mine!

So this is Pupdate #1 – over and out. Next time: They Put What In Pet Food?