Meet Ivy

Ivy made her debut today on facebook and instagram and I promised a blog post to "explain!" No, I'm not crazy to have 2 kids, 3 dogs, 7 seahorses and I'm not sure how many fish at this point... I needed Ivy as much as Ivy needed me ;)

Ivy is a 2 pound, 5 month old purebred yorkie. She is from a breeder in Kannapolis, NC that breeds Yorkie show dogs. Ivy's mom is on the smaller end for a show dog and Ivy's dad was not show quality as he was only 3 pounds... but in the words of the breeder "the teacup size yorkies sell better so we thought they would be a good match." Tragically, her parent's names are UR Princess Jasmine and Pitty Pat's Mr. Mingle.... no I'm not kidding. I couldn't bare to put either of those names in her name on the AKC registration form so she's just "Ivy Wise..." the least creative name AKC registrars will ever see. Anyways, the breeder thought "Princess Jasmine" would have 1 or 2 puppies but she had 3 itty bitty ones instead.The breeder thought they would die because they were the smallest puppies she had ever seen but all 3 made it! :)

Because the mom was so small and there were 3 puppies, there just wasn't a lot of room so each puppy was born very small. As they grew, the breeder started to notice they they all had problems walking normally and they took a while to learn to eat solid food. She babied them terribly badly and carried them most everywhere. Because of this, Ivy has low muscle tone and scoliosis from being crammed in a tiny womb with her 2 sisters. 

We had been casually looking at hypoallergenic small dogs for a little while and narrowed it down to a few breeds. Thursday night we turned down a dog we had inquired about that was just not for us. She was too young and was going to be A LOT of work to train! On Friday, the kids and I went to see another puppy that was a bit older than the Thursday dog but still young. She was described as "spunky" and believe me... I have enough spunk with 2 kids and a cocker spaniel so I turned that dog down too. We were looking for chill and snuggly. The breeder asked if I'd be interested in a 5 month old Yorkie that was teeny tiny but with mild special needs and it was love at 1st sight! I didn't know quite how "special" she was until we tried to get her to walk later that night but we didn't care. She was ours and we loved her immediately. 

The next morning, I took her to the vet to get checked out. We knew something was "off" with her but didn't figure it out. The vet diagnosed her with scoliosis and low muscle tone, which is why she walks funny. Compounded with being in a new environment and being anxious, she was walking super hunched over. Thankfully, her blood work came back great and Miss Ivy got a clean bill of health with instructions to keep her on the thinner side for her back and exercise her for her muscle tone. Now that she's more comfortable with her new home, she walks more normally, less hunched and even pounces and runs like a puppy should!

She is amazing with the kids. They absolutely adore her! 

I have to admit... I knew I'd love her but I didn't expect to love her enough to put her in my new Coach purse to take her shopping for a harness! 

She sleeps most of the day, she hasn't barked ONCE, she doesn't puppy bite, she sleeps through the night and is somewhat housebroken. She's pretty much the perfect dog. Ellie and Moses love her! Ellie treats her like the puppy she never had!

She enjoys her new, orange polka dot fluffy dog bed, her Bil Jac small breed puppy food (girl can EAT!), tiny squeaky balls and above all else.... a dish rag being pulled across the floor. It's the simple things, right?!

 

Tonight she's getting a good bath because tomorrow she gets to meet her nana, poppi and 95 pound Yellow Lab Aunt Peyton.... which I can only imagine will be like meeting a giant to this 2 pound princess.

So, am I nuts to have 2 kids, 3 dogs, 7 seahorses and countless fish? Maybe.... but I wouldn't trade it for a thing. I love this blessed chaos, I call my home!