Meet Gotti:

Yesterday, B went out front to grab the newspaper and this little guy came right up to him. He had been in our yard, walked straight up to B and wanted petted. He was very clean, no collar but just the friendliest dog. I had B put him in the backyard so he wouldn't get ran over. In the meantime we gave him food and water and he was very thristy/hungry. (He drank two bowls of water immediately!) While he was eating, I printed up two posters saying ''found dog'' with our phone number and placed them at the entrance of our subdivision. We live in a gated community with only 2 ways in...so the odds were pretty good he was from the neighborhood. I drove around asking people who were out walking, if they were looking for a dog. No one was.

I came home and the dogs were getting along. Rascal was immediately protective any time the new dog got near him, I or the kids (who were watching from the window). Didn't attack the new dog or anything, just growled. The new dog, would back up and just look at Rascal like ''Okay, I get it." Ron and I looked the dog over. We're pretty sure he's a Boston Terrier, he was neutered, clean. Short nails, no sign of fleas or matting. We introduced the kids to him and he did great. So after a while outside, we let him in. He stayed off the furniture, he knew commands like ''sit'' and when I said "I'm gonna take a picture, say cheese'' he actually smiled!

 By afternoon we still hadn't heard anything. I called the animal shelter but they weren't open. During nap-time, Rascal is put in his crate so he won't bark and wake the kids. I dug out an old crate from the garage and placed the new dog in it. He laid right down and didn't bark or make a peep. The dogs were kenneled for about two hours and both were good.

By this time, I made a listing on craigslist. I put our subdivision, that we had found a dog who weighed approximately 20-30lbs and to respond to the ad to identify. Three emails later and still no one was missing him. (though I feel horrible for the 3 people who may have gotten their hopes up). I took him on a walk and while many people stopped to admire, no one recognized him. I let him lead, saying ''lets go home'' but he never did. We came home and he settled right in, sleeping on the pile of dirty laundry.

So we decided to just keep him overnight and Monday morning I would take him to see if he was microchipped. Fast forward to his morning and I was there right at 8am. They scanned him and he has a chip! They logged into the chip company and reported him as found. His name is Gotti, he is a 24lb boston terrier. He had not been reported as missing. So I left my number, they called the owner and left a message saying the pet was found, with my contact info.

I opted not to leave him at the shelter. Firstoff, it's a kill shelter so if he isn't claimed or adopted within x amount of days, it's lights out. Secondly, he was happy and adjusted with us, so it seemed less stressful to just let him stay...for now. 

However, based on where tag registration says he lives the animal shelter thinks that either the people moved and now live in my subdivision (which if they did, why didn't they call me?) or  he may have been dropped off and abandoned in our neighborhood. His address is about five miles away, with two interstates and many big roads in between. Since he was clean and uninjured, it's unlikely that he ran away and made it that far. Since I walked around, drove around and then walked around yesterday and NO ONE recognized him and he didn't walk home, that seems a bit unlikely as well. Legally, if the owner doesn't contact me within five days, we can keep him.

So, now we're thinking...do we want to keep him? I mean we never planned on getting another dog after parting with Tito. But he is trained..he's not a puppy but not that old either. He has super short hair and doesn't seem to shed much. Animal control guessed around 3-5yrs old. Would we be crazy to keep him? Fours kids, two dogs and Italy?? Yeah...that seems kinda nuts. For now, we're keeping him because the alternative is the shelter. But I talked to Papa Barry and he might be interested in adopting him. He's been looking for a dog and since this one is already trained, doesn't barely bark, stays off the furniture and needs a home...it seems like a good fit. I have a crate for him, he walks on a leash well, he hasn't been digging in the yard or anything. The only issue is obviously Papa lives 12 hours from us. So we're gonna see if the owners claim him or not. If they don't Papa might come down for Thanksgiving and take him back to Kansas. We'll have to see how it all pans out. If Papa decides that he doesn't want him, we might just keep him.

Yeah, we'll have to pay the vet for shots and yeah, we'll have to pay for the plane ticket to Italy. It's not the greatest plan but the kids are smitten with him, as of now Rascal is ''tolerating'' him. I mean, they are curled up napping together but they aren't killing each other either. Gotti is good with the kids and the noise and the running and it seems kinda odd that a perfectly trained dog shows up on our doorstep who is good with kids and named Gotti...I mean, that's pretty Italian! Maybe it's a sign!? We'll see...but between you and me, I hope Papa can take him :). (B is totally wanting to keep him...how strange is that!?)

**UPDATED**3:31pm
We were able to return Gotti to his family. Apparently the side gate was left open and they didn't know it. He was very excited when his owner picked him up so as much as we liked him, I'm glad he is home.