Herman's Big Day!

Today was the big day that Herman came home with us! We got to meet all of Herman's siblings, too, and his mother Sundae (who is Nellie's younger sister). All of the pups were really wound up, racing laps around the tank, many of them hopping up onto my hand each time around the tank. :)

Herman's very friendly and has had no problem at all hopping right into my hand, and he even tolerated a few photos with me without getting too stressed.

We tried to do a cold intro, but Buster seemed quite irritated to have this tiny little runt invading his territory. He didn't try to hurt Herman, but he made it known immediately that Herman wasn't welcome just yet. So we set up a split tank, and are giving Buster and Herman some time to get used to each other. Buster started sleeping right next to the divider right away. Herman, on the other hand, spent hours on end running the wheel rather than sleeping. Or maybe I should say that he spent the time running in the wheel so fast that when he stopped, he'd flip around with the wheel a couple of times. Very cute!

When Herman finally did decide to get some sleep, he did it away from the divider. He seems very interested in Buster, but after Buster's earlier outburst when he first met Herman, it seems that Herman is happy to keep some distance for now.

We have noticed a couple of positive signs, though. First, Buster doesn't seem at all irritable about Herman's presence on the other side of the divider. Second, we often see Buster and Herman meet at the divider, touch mouths, and then go about their business. It looks like they're saying hello, and then going on their merry ways. We haven't seen any fluffing up, arching of backs, squeaking, or other signs that they're angry or unhappy to meet at the divider. Hopefully they'll be ready for a full introduction this weekend.

If you'd like to see a few of the photos we took of Herman today, check out the second page of Herman's photo album. :)

Thanks again to Michele of Double Star Kennels! Herman's already very friendly and is happy to interact with us, and we've already fallen head-over-heels in love with the little guy! :)