Jack (not Jill) Went Down the Hill - or rather - the Street...

Wow, another Christmas come and gone - I won't bore you with those details, although Mom did take me down to Galveston to be with her family. No one bought me a gift, but I did have a good time. We stayed only a few days and I had lots of human cousins to play with.

Today, however, I went for a walk with Mom and we met up with Ms. Kathleen and my BFF Estelle as usual, but today they had Lila with them - she's a four-month-old Chorkie - that's Chihuahua and Yorkie. She is black with white paws and very tiny and very cute - at least that's what the humans all say. I just don't get it. I mean, I'm part Chihuahua too and people don't fuss over me as much as they fuss over her (although they DO like me an awful lot - and really they do fuss over me too).

Anyhow, we walked a pretty long walk and then Mom called Ms. Jean to see if we could all come by to see her and Jack and Rosie, the Irish Setters. Mom drove me while Ms. Kathleen walked Estelle and Lila. I could have walked too - I think Mom is just lazy... (Don't tell her I said that though...)

We had a nice visit except Estelle kept chewing all over me. It makes Mom nervous, but Ms. Kathleen knows that I'M the boss of Estelle and can make her stop whenever I want. Mom didn't think so, so she babied me. I didn't mind since I like being on Mom's lap (although right now she has COL - Cat on Lap - or more specifically - China on Lap - so what am I, chopped liver? Ok, so the cats deserve some of Mom's special love too... but I can still be jealous.

Anyhow, we were finally about to leave when Jack escaped in the front yard! It was dark outside and Mom handed my leash to Ms. Kathleen and unlocked her car doors so that Ms. Kathleen could put all of us inside and help chase Jack. They live on a very busy street. It seemed like eons before they finally came back for us, but it was probably not more than 10 minutes. That Jack is a very bad boy - he should come when his Mom calls him. I would NEVER run away down a dark dangerous street like that! NEVER! That was very scary to all the humans. But now Jack is safe at home. Thank goodness!

The World According to Lucy (with help from Kathleen M.)- 11/15/11

Morning…

“Lucy, you need to go outside and pee.”

“No, I don’t. I don’t walk on wet grass.”

“Lucy, it’s just rain. It isn’t acid or poison; it can’t hurt you.”

“Nope, not gonna happen. I’m staying under this pillow. I’m a mole.”

“You are not a mole. You’re a Chiweenie.”

“I’m a badger- very dangerous.”

“Come on, I’ll carry you out.”

They go out, Kathleen carries Lucy, who then high-steps it back inside saying, “Icky, bleck, yuck.”


Later that same day…

Act One, Scene Two, same events but as soon as they get back inside Lucy goes tearing outside to run along the back fence barking furiously with Estelle at the neighbors’ visiting kids’ dogs.

“Lucy, what happened to the rain phobia?”

“That’s different. I was backing up my BFF.”

“Ah. Okay.”


Even later…

“Come on, Girls, let’s go for a walk.”

(Lucy) “Nope, don’t wanna. Wet grass.”

“Lucy, you need a walk, Estelle needs a walk, I need a walk. All God’s children need a walk.”

“Uh-uh.”

“What if we stay on the sidewalk?”

“Okay.”

Then, during the walk the girls see deer and a seriously huge buck, whereupon Lucy goes nuts saying,

“Let me at ‘em. I'm gonna get that big one. I can take him! We’ll eat him for Thanksgiving.”

“No ma’am, I will not let you at him, he is huge. He has antlers. We aren’t even going near him and besides, your Mom is a vegetarian.”

“I’m not.”

We enjoy our stubborn Lucy very much.

nnnnnnnnnn - it's a GREAT feeling! (11/09/11 8:10pm)

~;::::::;()"> Mom keeps looking at me funny because I can barely keep my eyes open. No, it's not really all that late, but if you went through what I did today, you might be the same way...

First of all, she's been giving me not one, but TWO dropperfuls of this really foul-tasting liquid in the morning and night for the past three days. If it weren't for the soft yummy treat she gives me afterwards, I'd be in a REALLY nasty mood! Well, this morning, she fed all three cats in front of me - but she didn't even give me one tiny bite! At least I didn't have to take any of that liquid either, but I was hungry MOM!

I usually don't get to go with Mom in the morning, but today she took me with her on a pretty long drive. It was kind of cold outside, but I was in the nice warm car, in my little hammock car seat in the back. She said we got there around 7:15 - to Animal Trustees of Austin. She parked on the back side of the building, so she didn't notice the line of people waiting OUTSIDE in the cold - she said she had almost put one of my t-shirts on me before we left and was sorry she hadn't - she said my green "BIG DOG in a LITTLE BODY" tshirt would have been the best. She said she figured they'd be open early for sign-in, but she was wrong and I was out there, shivering, even though she was holding me most of the time.

FINALLY, they did let us inside and she filled out some paper while I sniffed and looked around - as far as the leash would let me - and she kept pulling me back toward her. There were a lot of cats in carriers in the room and a beagle and a German shepherd puppy and a yorkie and a silkie terrier. One lady who had her cat with her said she had TWO dogs like me at her home! I wish she had brought them. But then another weenie dog DID come in and he sat down next to me - his name was Lenny and he was pretty cool - not as cute as me though!

Finally someone called my name - "Lucy?" - and we went to another room. They told Mom they needed to weigh me first, so Mom said "Table... Table... Table..." and I stepped onto a silver table. She then said "Wait" but I jumped off really fast becaues it was COLD! The lady helping Mom said I needed to get back on, so Mom repeated "Table" and when I climbed on she said "Stay/Wait" and so I sat obediently. The lady said I was just over 14 pounds which meant I had lost a pound since last time I was there! Yeah!

The lady was smiling at me and kept saying how sweet and cute I was. She asked Mom a few questions then Mom carried me to a cage! It was lined with only two thin pieces of newspaper on hard cold steel - I couldn't believe she didn't even give me a blanket or towel! What was she thinking?! As soon as she took off my leash and harness she tried to close the door, but I wanted to go with her. When she finally got it closed and locked, she turned to walk away, but I lifted up to reach for her and the lady helping said "Awwww... Don't look back! Don't look back!" Of course Mom did and our eyes met and then she turned and walked away... I think I saw a tear...

More dogs and cats came into the room and were put into other cages, then one by one someone took an animal and a nice man in a white coat worked on them. He was really fast and before long they came for me and then all of a sudden I was very very sleepy... and couldn't keep my eyes open. When I woke up later, I was back in the cage with a towel and my teeth felt nnnnnn, so smooth, so polished, so CLEAN!

I waited and waited and FINALLY I saw MOM! I thought she had forgotten me, but she came back and took me home. And now I can hardly stay awake and am ready for an early night. I can do without this kind of excitement! But Mom says my breath smells so good now!

Did Someone Say FOOD?!

~;::::::;()"> Mom goes on these long walks with me almost daily, often with her friend Kathleen and Estelle - my best friend in the whole wide world (whatever that means..). After several blocks of walking tonight, she told Kathleen she'd done something today that one should never, ever, ever do under any circumstances. Her tone was so foreboding that Kathleen's voice turned somber when she softly, but seriously asked "whaaaat?" And Mom said "I got into the Halloween candy..." Now I have absolutely no idea what Halloween candy is, but it must not be good. Mom continued that she'd been so good all day today and even listed what she'd had for dinner: a glass of wine (adding that that was probably the first mistake), only about an ounce and a half of cheese (a garlic white cheddar and a habanero jack) - my ears perked up when I heard CHEESE (yum!!!), some miniature club crackers (which she shared with me - I can catch them in midair), five or six large green olives (I don't think I like olives), about an ounce of cream cheese with chopped sweet jalapenos (I didn't get to taste this), and an apple sliced thin (she gave me a bite of apple, but I spit it out). Sounds like a big dinner to me, but ok, she thinks it wasn't. She didn't give me any of her cheese tonight even though I asked for it several times... Any way, she's telling Kathleen about all this food while I'm meanwhile salivating as we walk. And then the killer - she opens up the Halloween candy. And she tells Kathleen, "So not only did I buy like TWELVE bags of candy the other day... but I could have bought licorice or jelly beans or some other candy I don't like, but noooooo, I bought CHOCOLATE. And I could have bought some chocolate that I couldn't eat because of my braces, like Snickers, or 100 Grand, or Milky Way, or Mr. Goodbar, or something else chewy or nutty, but NOOOO, I bought candy that I actually like. So I could have bought all the SAME candy - the kids aren't going to know the difference and I would get bored after a couple of pieces, but NOOOO, I bought a variety of favorites, like Reese Peanut Butter Cups (the big ones), and Nestle Crunch, and Butterfinger, and KitKat, and Twix... So of course I had to sample them all (and two of the Twix..) - so much for the healthy eating today - darn wine." So, I really don't know much about all this chocolate business (Mom says I can't have chocolate because it can make dogs REALLY sick {am I a dog?!}), and I was still thinking about the cheese and crackers, but it all sounded like food to me and I was getting hungry. I don't think Estelle was paying attention - she doesn't seem to like to eat as much as I do. Maybe that's why Mom has me on a diet... The vet said I should weigh about 10 pounds - I weigh over 15... So Mom has me eating lots of frozen green beans mixed with my meals. Don't get me wrong, I like green beans; and today she gave me canned food for dinner, but boy, crackers and cheese - I'll take those any day. She can have her Halloween candy.

Take your LuLu to Work Day

~;::::::;()"> Well, someone must have forgotten to tell Mom that Take Your Dog to Work Day is not until June 24th, because she came home for lunch today, and after eating, she dressed me up in my pink flowery harness (made especially for me by DRoH friend Kayla), a bright pink leash, and a BRAND NEW pink leather collar covered with sparkly DIAMONDS (at least I THINK they were diamonds)! Well, I felt like a Queen, dressed to the nines (whatever that means) and ready to roll. Then Mom put me in my car seat and drove to a BIG building. I was so excited to be at a new place. I met plenty of really nice people and did my wiggle butt dance more than I can count! And guess what else?! That nice man, Mike, who kept me one time when Mom went away for a day, the man with weenie dogs Oscar and Chloe, he was there and he took a bunch of pictures of me to send to his wife Lori! I did a MAJOR wiggle butt for him because I was so excited to see him again! Later he found me again to love on me some more and said Lori told him he should sneak me away from Mom and take me home with him! Lori REALLY likes me, but then doesn't everyone? To know me is to love me after all. But going home to Oscar and Chloe might be fun for a day, but of course it wouldn't happen because Mom wouldn't let me out of her sight - she just laughed (kind of nervously actually) and smiled brilliantly at me. Then later Mom was talking to someone else nearby and left me blocked off in a strange place (she said it was near her desk and table). I could hear her, but I couldn't see her, so I started crying. I wasn't used to that place, so I needed to see her every minute. Mom said that building and office is where she goes every day when she leaves me - she has to work (in order to buy me diamond necklaces she said) and she was only able to bring me this afternoon because her boss was out of town. What is a boss? Is that like bossy? (I think I boss my BFF Estelle sometimes.) But I digress... Mom even brought my cushy pink bed with us and put it under her desk. I like it so much that I curled up and slept for some of the afternoon so she could work. It was a very fun day, but boy, was I happy to come home - I didn't want Mom to leave me at her "work" - that doesn't sound like a very fun place to be for very long. Of course, if Mom could take me there every day, I bet she would REALLY like being there!

Back at home I ate dinner (YUM!!!) and after it cooled down below 95, Mom took me for a walk with Kathleen and my BFF. We saw Reagan and Estelle was exploding with energy, running around with him like a mad dog! I just sat there - it made me tired even to watch. It was still really hot to me and I had already had too much fun at "work". Now I'm REALLY tired. I have my yak milk bone nearby so the kittehs don't find it, but soon I'll be ready for slumber - I can't wait. Thanks Mom for a REALLY exciting day!

Nightmare on Oak Lane

YAAAAWWWNNNNNNNN. Mom woke up at 3:45 am, rolled over, and hugged and loved on me. I had no idea why until she told me about the dream... It seems that my foster Mom (who is also my new Mom's sister AND the president of Dachshund Rescue of Houston {DROH}, where I was rescued) was there on business with Kayla, the really nice lady who made my Queen of Hearts costume for the upcoming "Alice in Wienerland" Buda wiener dog races and costume contest (but that's a different story). They looked serious. They sat down Mom and said they "did not think she was motivated by the best interest of the dog" (that would be me). My Mom was shocked - SHOCKED! And asked them if it was because she dresses me up. They agreed that that was part of it. But instead of waiting to hear more, Mom became very angry and defensive and blew up. They acknowledged that that simply confirmed their suspicions by saying "see". They told Mom she was being added to the "blocked adopters" list and would never be able to adopt from them again. Mom left yelling at them, but fearing they would actually try to take me away from her. In tears, she tried to call HER Mom, but no matter how many times she punched buttons, the call would not go through. She became fearful and angry at herself for blowing up instead of trying to convince them that she was indeed a good Mom - a WONDERFUL Mom. She thought of all the things she does for me - the special food and treats, the many harnesses and matching leashes, the walks, the play time, the watching me in the backyard instead of leaving me alone; and she thought of Kathleen, my best friend's Mom who could vouch for her - Kathleen knows how much Mom loves me. She thought of going back to her sister and BEGGING her not to take me away. She was scared that they would and that she would be absolutely devastated without me.

This altered reality seemed to go on a long time. I must have moved slightly or something because Mom slowly came back to life, awakening next to me. She turned and hugged me and rubbed my belly. I didn't know why she was waking me up so early, but I'm all for belly rubs, whatever time of day - or night. Mom realized the scenes were a nightmare and was extremely happy that I was there by her side, but disturbed that she'd have thoughts, even if subconsciously, that she wasn't the right person for me. Add to the list of good things Mom does for me that I get to sleep in the BIG bed! I LOVE my Mom - I don't want to be anywhere but here. "Right here. Right now. There is no other place I want to be. Right here right now. Watching the world wake up..." but now that I've had breakfast, I'm going back to bed...

~;::::::;()">

Me? The Dogster Dog of the Day?

Woo Hoo!!! I'm the doggie, I'm the doggie, I'm the DOGGIE of the Day!!! I don't know how, I don't know why, but they picked ME!!! I'm the luckiest dog in the world! Not just because of that, but because my Mom rescued me when I had heart worms and she made me all better and she loves me more than ANYTHING. Who could ask for more? Well, going for a walk would be nice - and guess what?! Mom is taking me now. And hopefully we'll see my BFF Estelle. And maybe Mitzi too and Harley and Benson and Sandy and and and - I LOVE Mom!!! I love Estelle!!! I love Ms. Kathleen!!! Yeah! I'm so happy happy happy today!

Birthday wishes, Adoption kisses

Friday, March 18, marked one year since Mom adopted me from Dachshund Rescue of Houston (www.dachshundrescueofhouston.org/). My BFF Estelle's Mom asked Mom if I could come over and play for the afternoon. Mom was home for lunch, so drove me to Estelle's house. Wow! Estelle bought me a HUGE balloon that said Happy Birthday and had a picture of a dachshund on it that looked JUST LIKE ME! What a surprise! Mom was laughing and smiling and couldn't believe that Estelle and Ms. Kathleen were throwing me a SURPRISE Birthday Party! Mom left, but I didn't even care - I LOVE my BFF! We played and played and played ALL afternoon. We play chase, keep-away, stalk-the-other-doggie, ambush, and roll-the-Westie (Estelle falls for it every time)! We took short naps and played some more and more and more. And we even got to eat FROSTY PAWS! Oh my! Was THAT ever YUMMY! I don't know why Mom doesn't ever buy that for me!

We had so much fun and when Mom finally picked me up hours later, there was even a gift bag for me - but I didn't get to open it. In it was a cute dachshund card wishing me "the most Weinerful Birthday ever" (it was!), a "Spoiled Rotten" dog tag (but really, I'm not!), and a "Scoop the Poop" laminated (whatever that means) sign for Mom since she and Ms. Kathleen are always complaining about the neighbors who don't pick up after their dogs - GROSS! Well, I don't think it's THAT gross. I like to smell it and pee on it, but Mom doesn't like me to do that... I don't know why...

There was also a toothbrush in the bag. I don't like toothbrushes, but Mom says she has to clean my teeth - she says I have bad doggie breath, but Estelle doesn't think so - she loves me just the way I am! And finally, the best thing in the bag was a new Yak milk bone - I LOVE those! Mom finally gave that to me later this week. I wouldn't let it go. She was carrying me out front so Dad could take a picture of her holding me with the bone and my balloon, but the balloon scared me and I dropped my bone on the tile and it broke in two!!!! I was so upset because I thought Mom wouldn't let me have it, but she did... And Dad got some good photos and I'm chewing on one half of that bone tonight. It's WEINERFUL!

I sure do love Ms. Kathleen and Estelle - they are the best friends I could ever ask for! Thank you for my birthday party! I know Mom is happy for the last year and hopes there will be many, many more with me. (Smelly) doxie kisses for Estelle, Ms. Kathleen, and of course Mom.

No! not the toothbrush! Not tonight! Naww uh awe uuu uhhh awwee (slurp!) ... ... ...

TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY!!!

Ok, so maybe not my BIRTHday, but the day that Mom adopted me from Dachshund Rescue of Houston. Boy, am I one lucky dachshund! I have the BEST Mom and lots of good food, long walks, and beautiful dresses and harnesses. I even have more than one collar so I can be stylin'! Mom LOVES me and I'm so happy to be living here in Austin. Even Dad kind of likes me - I can tell. Mom takes me for at least one walk a day and I get to play with my BFF Estelle. And YESTERDAY, I got to play with Riku, my next door neighbor! Estelle is a Westie and just a little bit bigger than me. We run circles around each other. Riku is a Finnish Spitz and is HUGE next to me. Mom says he feels as soft as a cat! Baaah humbug. I say he's just a nice big dog that I can outrun. But I do like playing with him. We talk to each other through the fence. Yesterday while we were playing, one of my cat brothers, Duma, climbed on the fence and watched us! Mom told him he'd better not jump! Well, I have a busy day today, so bye for now!

Mom's missin' Joey

Mom was thinking about Joey tonight. Guess that's going to happen some times. I know she loves me more than anything in the world right now, but she loved him too. I wonder what makes humans think about those who have died. I guess she'll think of me like that some day too, but I hope it's a long, long time from now. I want to be here with Mom forever! But I know that won't happen. I miss her just thinking about it. In fact, I think I'd better go find her...