So, I'm prompted to write this morning, because well, my dogs inspired me to a little bit. This is why.
I do have to admit, I do have two of the cutest and sweetest dogs ever, and no, I'm not just saying that. I have never met anyone who didn't want to try to steal one or both of them from me. I have worked very hard with both of them on their behavior, therefore, they are incredibly well behaved. I made sure they knew who was in charge, and that it was never them. (Okay. That's a lie. They really are in charge, but I am Alpha Dog here in this relationship.) They love each other. They love everyone they meet. All they truly want is love and attention and someone to hold them and hug them.
That being said, they are also the brattiest dogs you will ever meet, because all they want is love and attention and someone to hold them and hug them. For example, Timothy (my boyfriend and the pup's daddy) and I were laying in bed this morning. All snug and sound while the pups were finishing off their breakfast, so naturally, when they're done, they wedge their way in between us or try to get under the blankets, which just happens to pull the blankets off of me and introduce myself back into the frigid cold air. I then decide to get up out of bed, and my sweet and loving Milo Jackson decides to lay on top of my computer with his skinny and lanky body. Why? Because Mom is using this computer and I want her attention. I love them. They're a pain in my rear end. But... That's probably the sole reason why I love them.
Now, back to the introductions...
Myself? I'm a 25-going-on-80 year old student at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. (Go Vols!) I study economics and business administration, and as long as everything goes smoothly, I will graduate in Spring 2015. Clearly I'm a crazy dog lady, but we will get to that in a moment. I'm a server at the most beautiful restaurant in Knoxville, and I love it there. I am also a self proclaimed goddess in the kitchen and I will dominate you in every aspect. I have an undying love for sports and crafting. I also spend a majority of my time reading, and I am currently reading
A Dance With Dragons, which in case you don't know, is the last book in the
A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin, which is what the Show Game of Thrones on HBO is based on. (I highly recommend both the books and the show, BTW.) I have a wonderful boyfriend, Timothy, who is the most amazing man I have ever met in my entire life and is almost as in love with my dogs as I am.
Beauregard
September 11, 2011 - The first day I brought Beau home
My baby. He is truly the first person I ever fell in love with. So yes, I will tell you that he is my first love. When I got Beau, I was with my long term ex-boyfriend (we'll call him M), whom I had been begging for a dog for, well, forever. We had a Great Dane who had been hit by a car a few years prior, and M was still really shaken up about that so I was patient. We went into town one day to go get some stuff for his tree stand since deer season was slowly approaching, and I happened to notice a tent in the parking lot. We got closer, and it was an adopt-a-thon for one of the local shelters. Now, when I see puppies, I can't not go play with them, so we went. I was walking around and didn't see any actual puppies that weren't going to grow up to be ankle biters, but I still said hello to each and every one of them nonetheless. Then it happened. M saw them too. There were two black lab puppies in a crate. One boy, one girl. I picked up the girl first, loved on her, and then picked up the boy, because I have always favored boy dogs to girls. I was done. He put his head on my neck and went to sleep. I carried him around for 15 minutes until M told me we had to go. I was devastated. I walked around all of the sporting good store pouting. It was unintentional. My heart ached. That puppy was mine, and I knew it. I felt empty. I couldn't just leave that poor little thing there. There's no telling what could've happened to him if I didn't take him home. All I knew was that he was mine. We went to lunch, and I could barely eat. My thoughts were with that tiny little black lab puppy. From what the shelter workers told me, him and his entire litter of eight were just dropped off at the shelter with their vet papers. They had been taking care of them for a few days before they brought him and his sister with them. Naturally, that broke my heart, because how could anyone abandon anything that was that cute? Lunch went by, and I still was heartbroken and pouty. I had told M that I was going to pay for lunch before we went, but when the bill came, he picked up and said, "You can't pay for lunch. You're gonna have to buy stuff for your new puppy." I cried I was so happy. I went back for my baby black lab, and the ladies whispered, "I knew he would give in." I did too, but that's not the point. Within an hour, I was the proud Mommy of a black lab rescue puppy. This was 9/11/11 when I rescued Beau. On such a monumental day, I had to name him something that had to do with war or America or something. His full name is General Beauregard Walker (Tipton). Gen. PGT Beauregard was an American Civil War general for the Confederates from Louisiana and Walker from G.W. Bush. I have never been happy in the moment that I was driving this little fur ball home. I will truthfully state right now:
I will never have another dog like Beau. He is and always has been the most well behaved dog ever. It took one night to break him of crying. It took three weeks to potty train him. He never chewed anything that he wasn't supposed to (except when his canines impacted, but who can blame him?). He has grown up to be one of the most well behaved dogs I have ever laid my eyes on. I'm not saying this because I am partial. I say this because it's true. He will be 3 years old on June 30 of this year, and I can honestly say my life will never be the same because of this silly little puppy that I cried over. He is my protector, my heater, my best friend. I will never be the same because of him. My break up with M was really rough, but Beau helped me get through it and move on in life, and I will swear on my life he's one of the things that brought Timothy and I together.
Milo Jackson
February 16, 2013 - Leaving the breeder's farm
And then there's Milo. There's a lot that I could say about Milo, but he's a very special little boy. I got him exactly one year ago tomorrow. He is my first breeder dog and pure bred dog. (I've always had rescues and mutts.) He is a blue belton English Setter. When I got Milo, it was purely on a whim. I had puppy fever (I
ALWAYS have puppy fever) and one day, Timothy and I got into a argument. You know, normally, normal females, when they're upset, they have retail therapy, they shop, and buy clothes and other materialistic objects to make themselves feel better. Me? Clearly, I go buy a dog. Because I'm nowhere near normal. Like I said, I had been having puppy fever. My cousin and I had just signed the lease on the house that we live in now, which had a fenced in yard for B, and I thought it was time for him to have a friend. No one else thought this but me, but since when do I actually listen to people? I don't. So, I got it set in my head that I wanted a setter. I started looking. It took me forever to find a reputable breeder within a few hours of me, and when I did, his website said he had puppies available. Now, when I called him, I was NOT looking to get another dog immediately. I called to ask when and if he would have litters available in the summer. He told me about when his litters were coming up and when he planned to have some again, but then he told me about these three little pups. He had three boys who were never purchased from his Christmas litter, and he was selling them for $400, which is about $250 off the normal price. He told me if they didn't get purchased, that he was going to train them and sell them as trained hunting dogs when they were older. He sent me the pictures. I fell in love. There was this little boy with two big black spots on his face, almost like a mask, a pink spot on his nose, a half mustache on his mouth, and a black ring around his tail. The rest of his spots hadn't filled in yet, but a few were starting to come through. I continued to talk to the breeder, and I told him about myself, Beau, that I was a student and all that jazz, and he told me he would knock the price down even more for me since I was a student. I made a secret little trip to a little town outside Nashville. It was a big farm and Beau loved running around on it. I met with the man, talked to him for a little bit, and then he showed me to puppies. I was done for. One black and two red little boys. The two red ones sniffed and barked and tried to play with me and Beau, but the little black one, he just pawed his way up my legs and wanted me to pick him up. I did. I was done. I flipped him on his back and scratched his belly. He was done. I knew I had made the right decision. I let the puppies play for a little while longer so that Beau (my number road trip companion, BTW) could stretch out his legs before our trip back home. Since Beau was named after a Civil War general, I planned on sticking with that trend (and plan on doing so with all my dogs in the future), and he was going to be Stonewall Jackson. But then I saw him, and I just looked at him and said "Milo", I felt a little nose press up against mine and his little tiny tongue touch it. I paid the breeder, got all my paper work, and loaded him up to go back home. Now, most of my reasoning for actually getting Milo has to do with how much he cost. I would NEVER be presented with a deal like that again. A pure bred, good lined hunting dog, with championship blood in him... FOR $300?! Hellz yeah. I'm taking him home. And I'm so happy that I did, but I'll get to that shortly. The past year with Milo has been a little rough. He was the runt of his litter and he can be very shy and skittish. I had, and still have, a hard time getting him to gain weight. In October of this past year, my heart broke and I had never been so scared. Milo had become incontinent. He was so scared every time he had an accident because he thought he was in trouble. I eventually took him to the vet, because I thought he had a UTI. After some tests, they proved what I thought initially, but that it had spread to his kidneys and his bladder. Then my world came crashing down. After some tests, his urine levels resembled early kidney failure. I was devastated and made an appointment for him to come in the next morning. I called the breeder, and he had never had any issues like that with any of his dogs. I cried. I called my mom. I cried some more. I called Timothy. I cried even more. I went to work that night. I cried even more. They tried to send me home, and I said no, because this was gonna be costly. I cried some more. Some of the guys I work with offered to pay for any of Milo's treatment if I couldn't afford it (and I love them for that). I cried even more. The next morning, I took him in at 6:30 for fluid therapy and some other tests. I was heartbroken. Beau was beside himself. All of us were heartbroken. I eventually got to go pick him up and they did give me some good news. He wasn't experiencing kidney failure at the time, but his body was having a hard time breaking down protein. That left me with two options: prescription dog food which would be $6 per day just for him, or figure something else out. I decided on something else, and starting making my own dog food. Now, at 15 months old, Milo is slowly but surely gaining weight, with minimal issues, and he's even gaining muscle! Or that's what the vet said anyways. I'll take what I can get with his skinny, frail body though.
Come on. Really? This is why I'm in love.
Beau and Milo
I have never seen two dogs who love each other quite as much as they do. They are perfect for each other, and I could not be more blessed by the love that they share. For each other, for me, for Timothy, for my cousin, for everything. The cuddle every single night when we go to sleep. They never fight. They're almost always playful with each other, when they're not sleeping anyways. And I simply just love them. And that's a fact.
This post as gone on way too long. But I don't care. Because I love my dogs. And we all know that you do too.
No comments:
Post a Comment