Cocoa came to us at the age of five and a half. This rambunctious, hyper, and sweet girl has experienced a lot of loss in her life. She belonged to Christian's parents. Christian's dad trained her so well. He would leave a row of treats out, and she would only grab one a day. She also did not bark. She would make this very small sound that sounded like a whisper of a bark. As a young dog, she would stay beside Billy when he returned home from his dialysis treatments. Three and half years ago, Billy passed away and Cocoa lost an important person in her life. Fast forward to December 2012 -- Christian's mom became unable to care for Cocoa prior to her passing, and Cocoa came to live with us. Four animals were a lot, but she was such a great addition. She kept everyone on their toes.
I am not going to lie, there were some ups and downs. Cocoa can be very submissive in some situations. Initially, we had to be very careful how we said anything to her, otherwise we might be cleaning up a small accident. The frequency of these accidents has improved, but we still have to be careful sometimes. Additionally, Cocoa will put herself to bed if she thinks she has done something wrong or if she thinks someone (human or animal) is upset with her. Talk about sensitive!
Cocoa quickly acclimated to her place in our home. Within a week, she found her voice. No more barking whispers. She could make as much noise as any of the others. She also, eventually, made friends with Jack. Jack was rather hostile towards her at first. Having never heard him hiss, I was shocked at his reactions to Cocoa. Of course, he got over it. As Cocoa laid on the couch one night, Jack slowly inched up and smacked her in the face, TWICE. The rest is history. Now they are the best of friends. They run, play, wrestle and create havoc. It is wonderful!
A year later, we are so thankful Cocoa Bean joined our family. She brings us a lot of joy with her lovable, infectious nature.
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