The Crazy Dog Lady

Sometimes I picture myself old.  Of course, in my vision I look exactly the same as I do now since I stopped aging about 11 years ago. I envision myself living in a side-by-side condo next to Annette Benning. I will be wearing something bright and floral. I will have a fenced in yard. And I will have a LOT of dogs. The kids on the street will refer to me as The Crazy Dog Lady. I sometimes watch Animal Hoarders and think, "That doesn't look too bad...".  When we move I will miss my dogs deeply. When we leave in a couple of weeks we will be leaving behind two family members. The quarantine period to France is three months and that doesn't seem fair to the pupsters.

I have always loved dogs. I come from a long line of non-dog people. Non-pet people, actually. Whenever a holiday or birthday rolled around and my parents asked, "What would you like for your birthday?", my standard answer was, "A dog."  I even owned a button that read: "Dear Santa, If You Bring Me a Dog for Christmas, I Will Give You a Puppy When We Have Them."  Apparently, this had no effect on my parents, who instead, showered me with Barbie dolls and books. Which was really the next best thing. I even got Italian Barbie one year which was a total score. And, yes, her ta-tas were bigger than regular Barbie.

So, upon graduating from college and getting my first apartment, my roommate (Hi D!) and I went out and purchased patio furniture and a chihuahua (with the stipulation that when we parted ways, the patio furniture was hers, the dog was mine). Enter Precious.

Precious (aka Chi Chi)

Yes, I named her Precious. She was a 3 pound Chihuahua, what was I supposed to name her?  She was my first dog love. She would get super excited going through the drive though at the bank because she thought it was Beef-A-Roo (yet another reason to LOVE Beef-A-Roo -- pets love their roast beef). After four amazing years, I came home from work one day and she could barely walk across the room. Rushed her to Animal Medical Clinic (I love these vets -- they are the best) and she was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder. For the next two weeks she had transfusions and chemo. She slept in the oxygen tent at the vet. I cajoled her with fresh roast beef, but it had no effect. Two weeks laster she passed away.

For anyone who has lost a pet, coming home to empty dog dishes and an empty house is horrible. I cried and sobbed and ate (eating, of course, being the Italian way to cope with pretty much any emotion). Enter Bella.

Bella (Miss Boo)

Bella was quite possibly the most lethargic dog to have ever lived. Even as a puppy, she really just liked to lay on the couch -- near you, but not touching you. Because Bella was perpetually hot. She is panting in this picture and pretty much every picture we have of her. Even if it was 10 degrees outside, she was hot. My parents regularly fed her popsicles when she visited. She got lots of love and spent most of her time laying in her 'spot' in the family room. One morning last summer when she was 14, she fell asleep in her 'spot' and left us forever. Our little angel.

Prior to her passing we did become a two dog family. Enter Milo.

Milo (Mr. Mi, Bo Bo Fat)

Milo is a shelter dog. Shelter dogs are damaged, despite what the ASPCA commercial with the tear-jerker Sarah Mclachlan music says. The Paris Dad wanted another dog so we searched shelters for dogs that could coexist with our lethargic Pomerainian. The Paris Dad located Milo and visited, fell in love, and insisted that SJ and I go visit as well. The family made the trek to the shelter where they put us in the tiny room with the small black 'bad-Gremlin-like' dog. He snarled, growled, snapped, and shook. And peed.

Two college girls thought it would be a great idea to get a puppy and keep him in their dorm room. For a year. Without ever leaving the room. I looked at that shaking, growling, snapping boy with the big brown eyes and realized that no one else would ever take him. He had been in the shelter for 8 months already.

So, lots of training and socializing and training and socializing later, we have a sweet, sweet boy. Not perfect, mind you, but sweet. Shelter dogs require time, patience, and love. But they give you their hearts. Milo will be spending time with Paris Dad's mom and dad...where he will eat bacon regularly. I will miss him dearly.

Teddy Bear (Mr. T, T)

Teddy and SJ are best buds. Teddy has been with us for about a year now. He lives up to his name -- he is cute, cuddly, sweet, playful. A kids dream, really. Although finding a place for him to stay in our absence was challenging. I went into full-blown 'what-are-we-going-to-do-with-Teddy' panic mode when we were house hunting in Paris. I frantically began texting Annette Benning while eating a baguette (coping mechanism).  To say that Annette Benning doesn't like animals is a vast understatement (she doesn't even stress about poinsettias sitting out at holiday time. Hmmmm). She doesn't drink coffee either - sometimes I wonder how we can be friends. Anyway, Annette sent me a text. It read: "Don't worry. If you can't find anyone, I will take him. I will even be nice to him."  Did I mention that Annette Benning is the best friend ever?
But, thankfully, Paris Dad's sister is going to be taking Teddy for us....where he will be carried around in a giant Coach bag and float in the pool.

I will miss my pet family, but have strategies in place to befriend dog-owners in Paris. We will be heading out in a few weeks now! Just waiting for our visas.......