In 2006, we bought a big dog. At the request of my youngest son, I made sure that it started as a small dog. Needless to say, everyone loved Isabelle when we could carry her. That lasted for about a month.

Then, she was too heavy for any of the kids to lift and only fun for Dad. This is when the wife said maybe we should give her to a nice family and find a small dog. Personally, I could not envision the family (myself) with a small dog. Small dogs are small. After finding a happy home for Isabelle, we went out on our search for a small,tiny, (I hope I don’t step on the dog) dog..

As a family, we were pretty patient in our search for our new puppy. Me, I was very slow in the entire search process. I wanted a big dog. Of course, some advantages of a small dog include:

• Everyone, even the littlest child, can carry the dog.

• Clean up duty is pretty minimal and fast. It used to take a dump truck.

• She does not shed at all (added bonus of Shih Tszu-Poodle mix)

• She thinks she is a big dog.

• She can sleep on any bed and still leave room for the kids.

• 40 pound bag of dog food lasts 6 months plus.

I’m sure there are many more.

One day we got a call from my wife’s sister who would sell us a puppy for $51. We headed out that weekend to see what the little puppies looked like. They were small!!! The kids were real excited. You know a dog is small when your 8-year old can hold a puppy in each hand. After watching them rip and run in the backyard, we decided on the smallest one known as Taylor.

We took Taylor home that afternoon. Needless to say, she trained very quickly. She is quite friendly. All the kids can carry her around the house. Her full name became Taylor “Tot” Clark AKA the Dorito eating wonder dog. That dog loves chips. I realized soon after that she did not shed at all. What a great bonus.

From the whole experience, it can be said to be flexible in your pet search. Getting a small dog has been great for the family. She has been fun for all although she drank half of my caramel frappe’ today.