The Dog Blog

Let me tell you about our little babies.  While my husband was in London this last week volunteering with the Olympics, my little soft furry doggies and I had some serious bonding time – meaning I let them sleep in our bed every night – and I decided I needed to devote some writing to my intense love and appreciation for them. 

 Scarlet is my little princess.  On the day I met her, I knew she was meant to be mine.  We were at an adoption fair in Scottsdale, AZ and there were hundreds of dogs, cats, miniature horses, bulldogs in tutus, you name it.  She was the only white puppy in a herd of 9 beige and brown puppies and she was sitting calmly in the corner of the kennel while the others paraded and jumped around her.  I went over to her and asked the woman running the org if I could see her.  Her name was puppy #7.  I picked her up, and she put one paw over each of my shoulders and nuzzled her face into my neck.  It was the best puppy hug ever and I shed a little tear like the sap that I am.  I put her on a leash and she promptly army crawled alongside me and then flipped over on her back for a belly rub.  When my husband met Henry (Wesley in his paperwork), it was love at first sight for him as well.  He was one of the most beautiful puppies we had ever seen.  Red, fluffy, unbelievably soft. He was lying in a woman’s arms on his back like a baby, not moving, so calm and loving.  When she finally put him down, James snagged him.  We introduced him to Scarlet, handed over our cash and headed home.   

Throughout the time we lived in Phoenix and would grumble about how much we hated living there, we would always remind ourselves that we would never have our little family if we hadn’t lived there.  The sticker shock from moving them overseas with us didn’t last very long either, it is now hard to imagine life without them. 

I love the way Scarlet can curl up in the tiniest ball when she is sleeping.  I love how soft she is, what a good cuddler she is, how her whole booty shakes back and forth when I get the leash out.  When she’s in trouble, she army crawls over, squints, bares her teeth and takes her punishment like a real woman.  She is very bendable – one day I came home and she had escaped from the kennel, yet Henry was still inside.  She will sit in front of you and bend her head all the way back to smile at you and make sure you know she is there.  She will gently set her paw on you and throw her head back as if to say, ‘If you don’t pet me I will surely perish.’  She loves to camp, because it means she gets to curl up in my lap next to the fire and sleep on the air mattress – not to mention eat all sorts of tasty new things that she finds.  She is ragingly independent yet such a loving companion.  She cries when Henry is out of sight, and sleeps as close to my side of the bed as she can get, even if she is partway underneath it.  She waits quietly for me to wake up in the morning, and as soon as my eyes open her tail begins to wag and the army crawl toward my face commences.  As soon as I say the word ‘outside’ she slingshots down the stairs toward the door.  She loves to be bathed, loves to be Furminated, and lays on her back for nail trimmings.  If she could be continuously touched all day every day, I’m pretty sure she would sign right up. 

And Henry.  What a handsome boy he is.  A hit with the ladies everywhere we go.  So soft, so fluffy, so innocent and sweet.  The most well-behaved, loyal, calmest and sweetest doggie I have ever met.  The boy who doesn’t even need a leash because he will never leave our side when walking.  Who protects Scarlet when she is being sniffed or harassed by other dogs at the park.  Whose tail wags in a circle like a helicopter rather than back and forth.  Who is the best little spoon ever, and loves his rope more than a fat kid loves cake.  His first 8 months he would play with nothing, chew on nothing.  The day we brought home a rope toy was the day his world changed forever.  The flinging, the dancing, the tossing – it is endless entertainment and joy. And I love how they sleep in tandem.

I know that we won’t have our little babies forever, and I already work myself into a tearful tizzy thinking about the day they will cruise on up to doggie heaven.  But we recognize that, feed them the best food money can buy, give them all the ropes and bones they could ever want, and shower them with love and cuddles and scratches and belly rubs as much as we possibly can.  Hopefully that will be enough to keep them with us for as long as possible.

Cheers to Scarlet and Henry, and to your pets as well, whether they are still with us or waiting for you on the other side of the curtain :)