by Courtney Alexis Packard

Created on: March 03, 2009

Joey was supposed to be a girl. He was supposed to be named Josephine. He was supposed to be little, and dainty, and wear a bright pink collar with tiny rhinestones. But that is not what Joey is. Joey is husky, obnoxious, and would rather chew on his collar than wear it. Oh yes...and he's a boy.

I grew up with two beautiful tri-color bealges, and at their premature passing I promised myself that I would have another beagle in my life one day. My passion, or obession you could call it, with dogs began at such an early age. When I went over to friends' houses I was more interested in what dogs they owned than what toys they had. I told both of my parents countless times that I was going to be a veternarian (that is until I learned that such a profession would also entail putting beloved canines to sleep). I donated hours of my time to work at the animal shelters, and the owners of the local pet shop knew me by name. Needless to say, I jumped at the very first oppertunity I had to have a dog of my own.

My freshmen year of college left me jaded. I lost more friendships than I made. The weird in-between of not-quite-a-child and not-yet-an-adult left me feeling confused and alone. I decided to ditch dorm life for my sophomore year and to rent an apartment. And the very first item I wanted for my apartment was a furry companion.

I sought after beagle breeders from all over the area. I fell in love with countless beagle puppies at the shops and shelters, but something always held me back. At the time I felt incredibly frusterated because I knew I wanted my beagle girl and I wanted her right then, but, as usual, God knows me better than I know myself. He had other plans.

On a whim I heard of a breeder who sold gorgeous blue-tick beagle pups for dirt cheap. He bred them for the love of the breed and was not looking to make money (which pleased my college-drained wallet). A friend of mine's family had two of his pups and they were beautiful, spritely things. I called him immediately and was incredibly disapointed to hear he didn't have any females and wouldn't until the next litter six months from then. But before I hung up, he did mention that he had one little boy left. He was very hesitant to sell him before the little guy was rather special and the breeder had taken quite a liking to him. Nonetheless, he invited me to come on out and look at thim anyway. I agreed, thinking that if anything, I'd get to spend some time with an adorable puppy.

When we pulled into the breeders

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