Puppies

Our compound is losing our guard dog when the McGee's return - his name is Buster, and he belongs to them. (The McGees are moving to a new home on the Rosslyn Campus - where they will be able to be closer to the place they minister). Anyway, the compound decided it was time to start thinking about new guard dogs.

We bought two German Shepherd puppies. They aren't exactly the most ferocious looking animals, but we are sure glad we have them. Lexi and Jason got to go pick them out - from a litter of 8. (One of them had a pink ribbon tied around it's neck - any guesses how that one got picked?) There are several small children on our compound, so all of the kids take turns "acclimating" the puppies to children - so that when they are bigger they will be friendly with kids.

The guard dogs are let out at night to roam the compound. They bark if they notice anything out of the ordinary, and help alert our guards. It is ok if their bark is worse than their bite - with kids all over, that is a good thing.

As a rule, Kenyans don't really like dogs. It is a hard life for a dog here. They tend to roam all over, scavenging for food when they can get it. Villagers chase them and throw sticks at them. I think Kenyans think Americans are a little crazy in regards to our love of pets - maybe we are.

Our puppies are named "Ginger" and "Masala". They are a lot of fun, and spend at least 1 day a week with Lexi and Nate.

Here are some pictures. WARNING: the images you are about to see might be a little frightening!