A New Puppy in the Family

Dexter and Polly are getting ready for some pretty big events. The girl and the boy are getting married! And, the sister is moving to Nashville. She is actually going to live in a guest house in Dexter and Polly's backyard. That's not the biggest news, though.


What we are really excited about is that she is going to rescue a puppy!!! 

Dexter and Polly can't wait to see the new puppy. They look everyday to see if the new puppy has joined the sister in the guest house.

We're all pretty excited.....

Family Weekends

I'm a great jumper, but I'm not the only dog in the extended family with a special talent. Polly, who belongs to the girl, can scream like a woman.

When Polly visits us in Chattanooga, she spends the weekend hunting for cats and squirrels. Our cats are smart enough to vacate the house when Polly and Dexter visit, but occasionally Polly spots one. Then I have to hold my ears, because it sets off a chain reaction.

Polly spots a cat...Polly screams like a woman having her fingernails pulled off with pliers...Dexter and Henry turn and look at each other and start howling like werewolves greeting a full moon...the people (all of them) are just as noisy shouting commands for everyone to be quiet...I hide under a sofa pillow...the cats run away...the guest dogs usually just start barking.

You won't believe this unless you hear and see it for yourself!

Secret Talents

A girl's got to have some secrets. I kept a secret from my new family. I may be tiny with short little legs, but I am a magnificent jumper. The mom and dad put a little stool by the bed so that I can jump on by myself. It's cute and I used it - but what they didn't know is that I didn't really need it at all.

My secret was let out of the bag one night when the dad left some chicken wings on the counter. In my old life, I never ate dog food - just people food, and I have really been missing it. I could smell it and remembered how good chicken wings taste. I simply jumped up on the bar stool (over three feet high, if I might brag) and then made the short hop to the counter. Boy, was Henry mad. He could smell them, too, but I wasn't going to share. I was on about the fifth wing (I even ate the bones) when I heard the car come back. Do I get down? Or just dig into another wing? I didn't play this right at all. If I had just jumped down, I am sure that Henry would have taken the fall for this - who would ever guess that I could get on the counter? Or eat my weight in chicken?

The mom and dad came in and saw it all. Me, on the counter, with sauce all over my face. They don't put barstools at the counter any more. And, I have to jump on the bed with no help from the stool. It was almost worth it!

Henry - are you hungry?

Henry and I graduated from obedience school - twice. The mom and dad thought a second eight weeks would insure that we were always well behaved. One thing I'm sure Henry didn't catch on to is that he is only supposed to eat his food.

Once, the dad brought in this twig to keep Henry busy and give him something to chew on.

I'm not sure how effective that was. Let's see, where does the list begin?
Henry ate the plantation shutter. We were just looking out the window to see the cars go by, and we had a perfect perch on the sofa table that sits in the bay window. I loved watching the cars and squirrels, until the mom came in and found out that while I had been watching, Henry had been chewing on the shutters. They gated off the living room.

Then he went on a shoe kick. The latch to the bedroom closet was a little loose, and Henry would sneak in and choose a shoe to chew on for the day. He especially loved black boots. I think the last count was 16 pairs of shoes and boots. They put a very strong latch on the closet.

There were a couple of unusual things. The rocking chair in the den. Who eats a rocking chair? And some book that was for the mom's work. A teacher's manual? And people underwear - that's Henry's favorite. He'll raid the hamper or snatch it out of someone's hand as soon as they take it off. What a naughty puppy! I, on the other hand, am never naughty.

Well, there was that incident with the chicken wings....

Snuggle Bunnies

Everyone snuggles at my new home. I snuggle with the dad.

I snuggle with the mom, and you won't believe this - I snuggle with the cats. Well, almost.

When Dexter and Polly come to visit with the girl and the boy, there's more people and puppies to snuggle with.

Here's Henry snuggling with the boy's cowboy boot. The boy better watch out! Henry will eat that boot in an eye blink.

Have I told you about all the things that Henry has eaten?

The Treat Lady

Not long after I came to my new home, Henry got broken. I'm not sure how it happened, but then they took him to get fixed. He came home with the saucer around his head and laid around for a few days. It was my turn to be playful. But it wasn't quite the same.

As soon as he didn't have to wear his saucer anymore, we went to meet the treat lady. She lives in a cage in the middle of the pet store and invites dogs to come over for special treats. Then she makes us work for our treats. Sitting was a breeze, but I didn't want to lay down on the cold floor. Henry got it right away, but he would do anything for a treat. He sat at attention the whole time just staring at her treat bag. She kept asking me to lay down. I yapped and told her that the floor was too cold, then she told me I couldn't bark at her. I wasn't that hungry anyway. I looked around the ring, and found a solution. Henry joined me like it was his idea. Everyone laughed and I got two treats.

Eight weeks later we graduated from obedience school.

I received special recognition for obeying the "down" command on the cold floor.

Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!

Surprise #1. Cats! Two black cats. Two black, hide everywhere cats. Two black hide everywhere cats that sleep in the bed with the mom and the dad.

Surprise #2. Henry loves me. He shows me by taking a break from his playing and kissing me on my face - over and over and over and over.










Surprise #3. In this house, dogs are expected to sleep in crates. They've trained Henry this way since the first day he came here. Well, I have a suprise of my own. I WILL NOT SLEEP IN A CRATE! They hugged and kissed me, put me in, shut the door - then I let it all out. In yappy dog language I said"*#??**##!!!!!!". The dad said, "Let her out." They lifted me on the bed and set me on a pillow in between them. Then the dad said,"I think we were just cussed out by a seven pound ball of fluff." They both went to sleep touching me.

Surprise #4. I'm signed up for obedience school.

I Should Have Seen This Coming....

The mom is packing up to head home. She has her suitcase, and has wisely put Henry in a crate for the trip. The girl is holding me and talking to me about how much she has loved having me and that she will miss me. She's glad that I am going to be a part of her family. I should have guessed - I need a home, Henry needs a companion. Hmmmm....do I have a new family, or a new job?

We all get in the car, Henry is in his crate, but I get to ride right next to the mom on the console. It's a good thing, I've never been in a crate in my life and I don't plan to start now. The mom pets me and talks to me all the way to the new city, the new house, my new life and to a few big surprises!

Henry Needs a Companion

This is my view from my perch. I am spending a little less time on my perch today, and more time in the mom's lap. I think she would pet Henry more if she could catch him. He is never still. Dexter, Polly, and Henry are wearing me out with all of their playing. I have more important things on my mind, like, am I really going to have to go to a new home? The girl and the mom talk about Henry and the special eye doctor. Henry is blind in one eye and they are not sure why. They hope he won't be blind in the other eye, but the doctor says that he needs a another dog to live with him now while he can still see. Being blind in one eye sure doesn't seem to slow him down - he never stops moving. They had better find him a companion that loves to romp and play. That dog will have a big job on his hands.

Henry Comes to Visit

I'm not sure what all the fuss is about, but everyone seems to be worried about Dexter's brother. I learn from listening on my perch that the name of Dexter's brother is Henry. Henry and the mom are coming to Nashville today. They want to meet me right after they see this special eye doctor for dogs. I wonder what Henry will be like. Will he have spooky eyes like Dexter? Polly must like him - when the girl tells her he is coming she gets very excited.


Meeting Henry was quite a surprise. He may be Dexter's brother, but I figure out pretty quickly that they couldn't possibly be from the same litter. Henry is a PUPPY! A very playful puppy. He is almost as big as I am, and all he wants to do is play. He plays with Dexter, he plays with Polly, he plays with the girl, he plays with the mom. When he wears out everyone else, he figures out a game to play by himself. He wants to play with me, but no thanks. I'm busy perching, and following the girl. I'm worn out just being in the same room with Henry. At least both of his eyes are blue, and they aren't quite as spooky as Dexter's.

I like the mom. She sounds like the girl, she wants to snuggle. I show my appreciation with my eyes, and I find myself wagging my tail when I realize she is talking to me.

The Extended Family

I've learned some things from my perch on top of the sofa and from never letting the girl out of my site - or earshot.
The girl has other people in her life. There's a boy. He's "on the road" so I've not met him yet. I am gathering that he thinks that the girl does not need another dog. I think he should get off the road, he might get hurt.
The girl has a sister. The girl and her sister are very busy planning a wedding for the boy and the girl.
There is also a mom and a dad. I heard them say that Dexter has a brother that lives with the mom and dad. The girl is worried about the brother because something is wrong with his eye. They are coming to visit because they have to take Dexter's brother to a special doctor. Wonder what Dexter's brother is like? I think I need to stay up high and keep being completely devoted to the girl. I can tell she already loves me.

Following like a puppy dog.....

I’ve heard people use the expression “follow me around like a puppy dog”. I know what that means and I know how to do it. I make sure that the girl is never out of my sight or more than two feet away from me. When she notices how close I am, I make sure that I communicate my appreciation for her with adoring eyes. What I feel with my heart, I show with my eyes, and with artful waves of my fluffy tail. I’m still observing Dexter and Polly. I prefer to watch them from high places. I’m small enough to sit up on the high edge of the girl’s sofa and watch everything that is going on. Dexter makes a few friendly moves to get me to play, but I’m not quite ready. Polly’s pretty busy managing the squirrels. I meet some of the girl’s friends, they are all very interested in me, but I am only interested in the girl. The place on the pillow by the headboard is now mine. It only takes a touch, word or look from the girl to make my tail wag.

The girl has other dogs. There’s Dexter, who protects his food with his strange eyes. He has a brown eye that you have to look hard at to make sure it is there. His other eye is blue, and he uses it to scare me away from his food. Then there is Polly who is about my size, but I’m not sure she likes me. She’s very attached to the girl and keeps looking for squirrels. The girl talks to me alot, I wonder if she knows how much I understand. I’d like to stay here with the girl and her dogs, but she keeps talking about finding the perfect place for me to be loved. This place seems pretty perfect to me, except for Dexter’s spooky eyes. The girl gives me a bath today, she talks to me through the bubbles about looking clean and beautiful as I meet her friends. The girl makes me feel safe. I decide not to let her out of my sight.

My Name is Flower

My name is Flower. It’s the only thing that I brought with me to my new life. I live in the present, it’s a gift that dogs have. But I do remember the day my family drove me to a strange place and placed me into a stranger’s hands. I was shaking and I couldn’t make my tail wag. The girl with the kind hands and sweet voice held me and made me feel safe. In a few hours I had a new collar, a good supper, and got to sleep in the bed with people. She put me on a pillow by the headboard and stroked me until she fell asleep. I didn’t sleep much, but I liked being close to the girl. I heard her say something about finding me a forever home. I didn’t understand why I was there, but as long as I was close to the girl, I felt safe enough to wag my tail.