Day 8: Japatull's Rebel Yell

Several months ago, we said goodbye to our little obnoxious (and turns out, aggressive) pup Sonic go back to her rescue. Calen asked, with tears in his eyes if he had to get rid of his dog, if he could have a labrador puppy. And how, pray tell, could I say no?

So, after speaking to (literally) 10 different lab breeders in the general area, we finally were thrilled to find a breeder 3 hours north of us (Japatull Labs) that was actively breeding English Labs, and got put on a wait list for an upcoming litter that was due to be born in April.

Did You Know? English Labs are labs except generally shorter, squatter, thicker coats, and have a (slight) amount more chill than the leggier, silkier, batshit crazy American cousins. 

In mid April, we received news that a litter of 8 chocolate labs were born (3 girls 5 boys), and we were bumped up to receive 2nd pick out of the 5 boys!!

Fast forward to today! The litter is officially 8 weeks old tomorrow, and it's time for them to go home. So, we packed up the family, drove 3 hours up to Corning, had an olive sandwich at The Olive Pit (since Corning CA is the Olive Capital or something), and drove out to a gorgeous ranch a few miles out of town to meet our little sweet bundle. 

When we arrived, the 4 remaining boys (all 3 girls and 1 boy were already gone) were in a little doggie playpen, wrestling and playing with balls and a cup with their little different colored ribbons on (to identify them). They were finally here in front of us! The puppies we had been watching grow on Instragram for 8 weeks! 

Now how the hell do we choose?!

Although we told the kids Brad and myself would choose the pup, Calen in the end really bonded with the teal-blue ribboned boy, a chunky sweet faced little guy who was following him around and playing. 

We have a winner!!

And so, teal-blue ribbon boy became Japatull's Rebel Yell (or "Rebel").

Actually, since we aren't registering Rebel in the AKC (though he does have a pedigree and we have the papers to prove it), he really doesn't have a registered name. But if he were to have a registered name, that would be it. Instead, he's just "Rebel".

Another fun fact: Rebel's great-great-add a few more greats-grandfather was named Rebel, which we didn't know until today. The kennel owner said that her Rebel was the first male she ever bred, and there's a direct family line down to our Rebel. How fun!

It just so happened, the collar we had waiting for him was teal-blue, the same color as his ribbon!

Rebel was great in the car during the long drive home, after a few bouts of whimpering and crying - after all, he hasn't ever been away from his home or siblings! We stopped at a rest area and he was the best of puppos by going potty on the grass and not inside my SUV. 

At home, he took to the back yard fairly quickly, and very much enjoyed the toy stuffed duck that Calen picked out for him. We had some visitors and he played for a good hour before finally going inside. 

He was a little more nervous inside, after all it's a big new place for a little guy! And like most babies, he was surrounded by brand new dog toys, but chose to play with a paper cup.

We flopped him on Calen's bed for story time, and he made himself right at home snuggled in between Calen and some stuffed animals. 

He needed some quiet after a big day. 

Welcome home, Rebel. 

Pin It