The Story of Colt and Abigail

Andrew grew up with a yellow lab named Libby and I grew up with a black lab named Mikey, which is why we decided to get a chocolate lab.  I remember we looked for weeks looking for the perfect lab. When we saw Abigail and Colt’s litter we knew they were the ones.  We drove about 2 hours to pick them out.  On our way there, we stopped at Starbucks.  My name is Courtney but when I got my drink the name on the cup said Carly.  Carly is the name of Andrew’s sister that passed away when they were young.  We both looked at each other and smiled knowing that Carly approved of us getting a chocolate lab puppy.

Originally, we went to pick out one but once we got there, Andrew fell in love with Abigail and I fell in love with Colt. Their names were Chocolate Balloon and Cinderella haha.  The breeders had a five year old son that named all of the puppies.  Colt was the second biggest puppy and Abigail was perfectly proportioned.  Abigail was protective over Andrew instantly.  She sat on his lap and wouldn’t let any of the other puppies on his lap, so of course he was sold.  Colt was more of this big chunk that wanted to sleep in my arms the whole time.  The whole way home I couldn’t stop thinking about Colt so we figured we would sleep on it and see how we felt the next day.  The next day, I called Andrew at work and we both agreed we needed both of them.  A couple of weeks later we drove back to see them, which was the first time they went outside.   A few weeks later, we met the owners halfway and picked them up. We were soo excited!  We brought them home a week or two before Christmas and thought they were the best Christmas and birthday presents we could ever give each other.

The deal was Andrew could get ONE dog if he moved out of the house.  His dad was pretty shocked when we walked through the door with two puppies, not one. It wasn’t long after we brought them home that they picked favorites. Colt quickly became attached to Andrew and I quickly became Abigail’s favorite.  Colt never left Andrew’s side and Abigail would cry in my pillow when I went to work.  To this day, Abigail and Colt always cuddle.  We have two big dog crates and they prefer to share one because neither of them like to sleep with Charlie.  They are great dogs and have mellowed out a lot.  I think labs have a puppy stage of about 2 to 2 ½ years.  The only down side is they think our chickens are chew toys.  They both love the water and will lay in water troughs during the summer.  One of their favorite things is to swim whether its at the beach or in freezing cold water in Big Bear Lake.  They are definitely water dogs!

Hiking in Big Bear, CA!

First week in Arkansas!

On the way to Arkansas!

First Christmas in Arkansas!