Does Your Chewing Gum Lose It's Flavor On The Bedpost Overnight.....

Yesterday I wrote about Oscar. He seems none the worse for wear as he stands barking at what he sees as an intruder. We call them customers. His bark is quite intimidating. It is low and gravely sounding, even though he has not smoked a day in his life.

The newest addition to my canine contingent is Toni Louise, the puppy we rescued from the animal shelter. We were told that the best guess about her lineage was part Dachshund, part Chihuahua. In her mug shot posted on the web she looked small and diminutive, and a little bit like Sweet Emmy Lou. Well, photos can be deceiving.

I feel quite confidant that there was no chihuahua or dachshund involved in the blood lines of Toni Louise. Her legs are freakishly long, making her appear gawky and uncoordinated. Her long hair is brindle in color and soft and shiny. Her face reminds me of my Collie. I think she is a Border Collie/Shepherd mix. She is not a large dog, but she is not a small dog either.

I suppose she is just right. For us she is, anyway. My daughter says she looks like a miniature moose. She does not look like a moose to me, although I have to admit that her legs do look too long for her body. I am hoping she will grow into them. She is not yet a year old ..... as far as we can tell.

She fit right in with the other dogs as soon as she came to live here. She plays with Wall-E endlessly, until he is forced to snap at her or hide. She has learned to defer to Emmy's fragility, although she does forget sometimes when she is overtaken with excitement. She pretty much ignores Oscar's attempts to put her in her place. He has to be very aggressive for her to leave him be.

I know she is still a puppy, but I don't think her personality will change too much. Her name may have something to do with that. Her name is Toni, because, we have an Oscar and an Emmy, so we needed a Toni. Her middle name is Louise because her unflappable curious nature is so much like that of my old Saint Bernard, Louise. Just like her namesake, she gets into trouble almost daily and just shrugs off the scoldings and punishment as if it is just part of what she expects.

It started to snow one evening and I did not realize it until I was taking out the dogs for the last trip of the evening. Oscar and Emmy trudged out resigned to get it over with. Wall-E had to be pushed out into the swirling snow. Toni was circling the yard on her hind legs looking up to the sky and trying to catch snowflakes. It was a little like the wonder of a small child's face as they see something for the first time. She has certainly seen snow before. She loves it. Louise loved snow, too. Like Louise she loves to escape. For no other reason, it would seem, than just to be able to do it. She loves people and loves to come into the store to see them. Louise did, too.

Louise was a chewer and a thief. She ate my coffee table and a lot of firewood. Toni loves to steal pieces of kindling and take them to bed at night to chew on. You know, in case she tires of sleeping. She is a big fan of the TV. The other dogs will sometimes respond to animals they hear on TV, but Toni actually watches TV. She seems to like Jay Leno for some reason. Animal Cops is another favorite.

Her latest escapade is unique. He who loves bubble gum has been known to come to bed with a mouthful. Rather than actually get up again to toss it in the trash, he will put it on his night table. The dogs can't reach the night table from the bed. I should say that most of them can't. Or won't. So, after discarding his wad of bubble gum the other night, he who also loves ice cream, decided he needed to eat daily requirement of Blue Bunny Homemade Vanilla topped with chocolate shell. I was watching Jon Stewart give his spin on the candidates and not paying attention to the dogs.

Upon finishing his dish (serving bowl) of frozen confection, he also placed that on his night table, secure in the knowledge that she who loves and takes care of him would remove it the next day. I could not understand why I could still hear lip smacking. I looked at him and he looked at me, apparently wondering the same thing. Then we both looked at Toni Louise who was watching TV and chewing bubblegum. Loudly!