Introducing Maddy the Labrador Mix, originally uploaded by pmarkham.

Things have been a little too quiet around our house since Jordan the Golden Retriever died a few weeks ago. We finally broke down and went to the Animal Humane Society in Golden Valley to see what they had for adult dogs in the larger varieties. The second dog we met was a black lab mix named Mary Todd. She looks very much like a purebred lab except for her short stature and her extra long ears. Just a guess — but maybe a Lab/Beagle mix? They estimated she was four years old. She had no health problems that they were aware of other than she is very overweight. It was obvious after a few minutes in the visit room with her that she was very sweet and very calm. After 20 minutes with her, we decided she would fit right in at our house so we went through the adoption process.

The first thing we did was change her name. She is now named Maddy. She is quickly settling into the house. The cats are not happy that we introduced a new dog, but they are very curious about her. Maddy is very curious about them too.

I expect you’ll see lots of photos of our new canine companion in the weeks and months to come.