No way would we turn him into a ramrod like his old man. We had no way of knowing, looking at his solemn little self, that he would mature into a creature every bit as dominant as his sire, all my hippie dogrearing practices to the contrary notwithstanding. We didn't know. We couldn't know. I looked into his eyes and saw the blankness that is typical of the breed.
Poodles have none of the golden fire of a husky or the emotional warmth of the Labrador.
We agreed to take the puppy home with us in another four weeks, wanting him to have plenty of time to play with his litter mates and be with his mother. I looked at the kids' faces as they petted the baby dog - they were never so beautiful to me. The four weeks passed, and we picked the dog up at Brigitte's and brought him home, draped across Daniele's lap. As we arrived at our house, the rain was turning to snow - the first of winter. We led the little black dog to a sleety corner of our back yard to pee, and waited until he was done.