Farewell Forest

It's with a bit of a heavy heart that we said, "Goodbye" to our boy, Forest last night.  He is off to a wonderful home and wonderful family in CA where he will enjoy many, many new adventures, I'm sure.  His first one started last night ~ he stayed with his new family at a hotel in Madison and then off to the airport bright and early this morning.  His first flight on a plane was today - luckily he got to fly with all the people and not in cargo.  He loves people, so I'm sure he was pretty happy about that.  I'm not sure yet how he did on the plane, but knowing Forest, he was a bit of a handful!  I'm hoping I will hear from them later this evening when things settle down just a bit; I'll fill you in on the happenings.  


It is very bittersweet this time.  Mind you there was a little tug on the ole heartstrings when the other boys left for their new homes, but I knew this one was somehow special to us and we have all experienced a little more emotion than we thought we would.  He was the most vocal of the litter, so I'm guessing I won't miss that part, but every time a puppy leaves, the litter dynamics change as well.  I guess we'll see what these 2 boys have in store now.


It sounds like he will retain his strong name...and he responds to it well (most of the time anyway).  He will eventually be learning all about agility, snake training (very important in those parts) and perhaps experience a little hunting as well.  He will have lots of room to run and play too.  He showed his new family very quickly just how good that nose of his is!  He attacked the bag they brought that was full of new treats and toys.  They were just waiting to be gobbled up and chewed up by the love of a lab, don't you know?!


After he gets off the plane, he gets to head in to the office to spend some quality social time with the staff.  WOW!  Talk about a full day!  Hopefully, he will be a very tired puppy by the end of the day and the time change won't be significant.  I'm also hoping he'll let Susan and Gary get some much deserved rest after their whirlwind trip to and from Wisconsin.  


We were so glad they could come and meet us all in person!  We were able to spend several hours with them and learn more about the life that Forest will live.  We are so happy for them and glad that Forest will be able to have more individual training time.  He will also join a couple of other pets in his new household and a "big brother" (the human kind) as well.

Happy Family!
Susan, Gary and Forest

Good luck to all!  (we miss you Forest)