Dog Days….
I grew up around dogs. I don’t understand people who don’t like them. I’m not saying don’t be afraid of a strange dog- never get in the face of a dog you don’t know! When we finally had a house with a yard, I couldn’t wait to get a dog. Some people want patio furniture, I wanted a dog!
Right after we moved in here I’m sad to say we adopted a puppy and it didn’t work out. She was an outdoor dog, the owner kept hunting dogs in a kennel and this was an unplanned litter. None of the pups were ever played with. We wanted her to be a pet, but she was terrified and “nippy”-maybe if I’d had more experience, and didn’t have a small child to worry about, I might have been able to work with her and calm her down. But after a couple of months, I gave up on her and gave her away to someone else. I feel guilty because I take the commitment seriously.
Anyhow, I still wanted a dog. We got a Jack Russell puppy- she looked a little like Spuds McKenzie, so she became Coors Lite Spudette, our Empress Bardula. She was zippy, a tireless little hunter and the best watchdog ever. But once a person was let into the house, she’d do her best to get in that person’s lap. She loved people.
She was also the first dog that chose to be my dog- I still miss her.
In 1994, Pam and I went to a picnic with friends and came home with a 9 wk old blind Sharpei. She thought he needed strength to face the trials of Life, so she named him Hercules. Mike and I hadn’t discussed getting another dog. I just brought him home and dropped him in Mike’s lap. That was all it took, and basically he was at Mike’s side for the next eleven years. They were best friends. We like to say he was the smartest dog that ever lived.
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Early in 2001, we lost Coors. As she got older she was afraid of storms and would freak out. One day, I was at work and it stormed. She got out of the yard, into the road and got hit. It was awful. I used to drive home from work crying my eyes out, knowing she wouldn’t be there when I got home. We still had Hercules, but he was Mike’s dog; he only put up with me. Pam convinced me to go visit the animal shelter. I came in wanting a slightly older dog. Housebreaking is hard! I can’t even remember the other dogs- they were all so sad because they’d lost their homes. Then down in the big cage, was an exhausted border collie, with a litter of nine pups jumping all over her. Most of them looked more like black lab than border collie. We came home with the party animal! He was christened Tesla Trout- jester of the family. He’s a mama’s boy! He calmed down after about four years. Now I’m a bit concerned he’s aging so fast; he’s going gray and moves pretty slow for a 6 yr old dog. Just today we went outside so I could pick tomatoes and throw the ball around a bit. He’d run like a puppy to the ball, but he’d walk it back to me. Like saying “it’s hot Mom, let’s slow down.
In 2005, Hercules died. He’d been going downhill, losing weight, and came that difficult morning we knew he was suffering and it was time to let him go. Mike took it very hard. He’d lost his buddy. But he also said he didn’t want another dog. Okay with me, I still had Tesla- my big, yodeling dog of devotion!
Then last year I went into a mall pet store- just to look at the puppies, I swear! And down on the bottom row, with the dogs that were getting big, with a sign that said “REDUCED” hanging on the cage, was the beauty queen of all Sharpeis! She was cream colored, calm and irresistable! I got out the credit card and VeraWang came home with us. She is totally Mike’s baby girl. She has an interesting personality, more like a cat than a dog. She can be aloof like a cat- or downright rowdy. Loves to go in the car-she recognizes the Chic Fil A! 
But I’m quite certain now, having had a whole bunch of dog kids to love, the family is complete!
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