Awwww… she’s a beauty. I’ve got a soft spot for brindle dogs.
Gosh, what a beauty. Can’t wait for more updates!
What a sweetheart. I am so glad that you guys saved her. 
That protective coloration with the brindle stripes works wonderfully on the jungle-print motel bedspread. You can barely see her! What a cutie. Congratulations to you. May she brighten your lives for many years.
StG
Then may I suggest that you zip your luggage closed & put it up on the desk before you go to bed. :o
Drive safely, Sailboat! Diamond looks like a keeper!
She looks lovely! Thank you for sharing
Ha–crawled into bed last night and felt something strange…one of my shoes somehow got into the bed.
No “accidents” indoors last night, a promising sign.
Setting out for home!
Safe travels, and thanks for the update. I bet that’s one happy puppy.
Oh yeah, she knows she’s found her home. Drive safely.
The seat belt strap is NOT a toy! PUPPIES!!!
Are you sure it wasn’t already like that? 
Oh no.
Diamond’s tale has taken a heartbreaking turn.
We got home all right…15 damned hours on the road. Despite the intense cold and buffeting winds, we went BACK out in two separate cars to try the all-important introduction to our beloved Simone. Neither dog is a cold-weather dog, but we didn’t have the luxury of time.
Diamond was very interested in Simone. I let her close in very slowly. Then suddenly she sprang and tried to wrap her forelimbs around Simone’s neck, snarling.
We separated them instantly. But Diamond bared her teeth and remained in a more-or-less permanent lunge toward a startled and nervous Simone.
Admittedly conditions were less than ideal. But Diamond had been very responsive to me during the trip, always looking at me when walking, and I had hoped she’d respond to my efforts to calm her. SOMEONE in the chain of contacts…either the public shelter, one of the rescuers, or the temporary foster, had described her as “good with other dogs.”
This wasn’t good. Appearances can be deceptive, but this looked like outright dog aggression.
What on earth would have prompted someone to interpret this as good with dogs???
I am so in love with Diamond except for this.
Once before we were able to overcome our Sadie’s bad reaction to Simone (by very structured introductions). But this seems like a real longshot. Only the fact that Diamond is so young allows me to speculate such a change is even possible.
Ok, while I was slowly keying this into the phone, my wife called the lady who pulled Diamond for us. It was apparently the public shelter who claimed she was dog-friendly. This lady assures us that this behavior can be addressed successfully in such a young dog, and she’s seen it done. That sounds slightly encouraging.
In the meantime, Diamond can’t stay here tonight. We tried bringing her in separately and putting her in a covered crate, but once she detected Simone had come in too, she began barking steadily and Simone, unsure what was going on, threw her head back and howled along.
The Deus ex Machina here is my wife’s currently dogless sister. So Diamond is packed off to the relatives for a few days.
Meanwhile, we need at least a trainer, probably a behaviorist. STAT.
I am not an expert on dog introductions, but based on my experience I don’t think it is a good idea to let a new dog meet an old dog face to face right away.
You may find the info here from an organization that promotes responsible pitbull ownership helpful: Dog/Dog Tolerance | BADRAP
http://www.badrap.org/multi-dog-homes-0
BAD RAP Blog: Fostering: Drive in the slow lane for dog/dog intros
The first night we brought home our new dog, we tried to let the new dog meet my old dog face to face and it didn’t go well. They were both too worked up (even though we tried to introduce them on neutral territory, outside on the street rather than in the house). The new dog was very boisterous and we were worried they wouldn’t be able to be together without aggression.
However, we backed off. First we kept them in separate rooms so they should smell each other but not see each other, and we slowly worked our way up to a face to face meeting.
Within a few weeks, they did become best friends.
Have you worked out a plan for trying again? I do know a good trainer in the Bay Area, but I seem to recall that you are not on the West Coast…
Thanks for suggestions. Do not yet have a plan…mostly just slept. I am a fa. Of BADRAP and will read the links. We are very East Coast…although I believe I’ve just demonstrated that I will drive any distance for a dog. 1750 miles round trip.
Diamond cost us nothing directly, and onmy $13.14 in boarding fees. I joked to my wife “Look how far I’ll go for a $13 dog.”
Still struggling to decide our next move, but need to put in an appearance at work.
Aw, sorry to hear that. I hope things can be resolved.
Well, we were all tired and stressed last night, and a 15-hour car ride is not optimal preparation for a puppy to be calm. We will seek help and move forward cautiously.
At a cost of $13 so far (plus gas?) I guess you can board Diamond for a short bit of time while you gather advice and resources. Definitely get the advice of a dog behaviorist, and definitely try (cautiously, and with well-informed patience) again.
How disappointing!
I’m far from being a dog expert, but some of the ladies at adoptions are wonderful with training dogs. What seems to work for them is bribes. I’ve watched them with a couple of dogs that didn’t get along. They would let the leashed dogs see each other and give them treats as long as they didn’t get aggressive. As soon as the dogs got aggressive, they would pull the offending dog away and walk away. The other dog got treats for being good. They would probably also do other things that I didn’t see because I was usually busy with the cats, but they did seem to be able to get the dogs to sit quietly in the same area in a couple of hours. (My dogs love cheap cat kibble. That’s what I used when our new dog was afraid of our cats. If she was in the same room with the cats and didn’t pee on the floor or hide under the stairs…she would get kibble, one piece at a time.)