Are You Furever in Love with Puppies?

Puppies. Puppy faces. Wiggly puppy bodies. Puppy breath. I can’t get enough. Are you furever in love with puppies like I am? 

I’ve had an on-and-off relationship with dogs my whole life. I’m told my first dog was a Cocker Spaniel named Buttons. Sadly, as a toddler, I helped let him outside once too often. I remember little of my childhood. I was in grade school when we got our next dog. Sammy was a pound puppy—okay, not really a puppy—but to me all dogs are puppies. But four kids and a day care and a rambunctious sixty-pound dog was too much for my mom. Sammy stayed outside. So I liked dogs, but I wasn’t overly fond of them.

Months after DH and I married, he spoke about his love affair with a tiny pekinese mix named Bear. Bear had been “lost” to his first wife in their divorce.

NEMO

Image of my Miniature Schnauzer puppy, Nemo  whom I'm furever in love
Baby Nemo

He talked about Bear a lot. So when post-op depression took hold of DH, I decided it was time to get a dog. Since DH is allergic to everything, I researched “non-allergenic” dogs. Surfing puppy pictures, a funny feeling started growing inside me. I found a Miniature Schnauzer pup and brought him home. Nemo (2001-2011) was the perfect dog at the perfect time. (Have your tissues ready and read my goodbye to Nemo.)

My salt-and-pepper mini schnauzer all grown up and handsome
Nemo, miniature schnauzer

COSMO

Cosmo, a blonde schnauzer mix

We soon decided Nemo needed a friend, a pack mate. I found an ad for a Schnoodle (Miniature Schnauzer-Poodle mix). We brought Cosmo (2002- 2015) home. I hadn’t done my due-diligence and when we finally got papers on Cosmo. He wasn’t a Schnoodle but a Standard Schnauzer-Bichon Frise mix. That explained both his size and his tendency to walk on his hind legs. He could walk all the way around the table or along the counter and never touch it. But he could snatch a goodie from either surface and snarf it down in a second. My vet called him my clown dog. And he was a lovable clown all of his days.

Cosmo and Nemo posing for the camera
A clown who adored his big brother.

ASTRO

Baby Astro sits pretty for a treat with big brother Nemo watching

I loved all my dogs but still had puppy fever. And Astro (2005 — ), my first Yorkshire Terrier, came into my life. At less than five pounds, he was and is my first furever puppy. In early 2017, he began having seizures. The vet said he probably had a brain tumor. She warned us that our time with him was limited. His condition grew worse. I blogged about that in my post, My Dear Old Dog. I’m happy to report that his health turned around and he’s still with us. Still an independent little guy who loves to have his head scratched.

Astro, Nemo, and Cosmo ducked between the curtain and the front window to stare out into the yard.
The three amigos loved watching the front yard from atop our loveseat in the window.

GIZMO

Gizmo hiding near mom on his first day
Gizmo’s first day with us.

In 2014, Unleashed, my local pet rescue folk advertised they had a Yorkie available. They estimated his age at around 3 or 4 years. I couldn’t help it. I went to see him. Poor thing quivered and cowered in the crate he was in. He practically jumped into my arms and promptly nestled up against my chest and sighed. You know I had to bring him home. We named him Gizmo (2010?—).

 NEO

baby neo

With Cosmo gone, my little pack of fur babies needed another companion. We brought Neo (2017 — ) home. I blogged a bit about him in We Interrupt This Blog. Neo is energy and love and energy. He can barely sit still for a treat but he wants in your lap and both your hands petting him for the thirty seconds he can sit still.

grown up neo still a puppy

Furever in Love

My three dogs I'm furever in love with these puppies
The bed was in the empty shelf but they wanted to be closer to mom working at her computer.

I admit it. I am furever in love with puppies. Luckily, Yorkies are furever puppies. Now with three Yorkies at my feet or in my lap all day, I am —content. Just don’t tell me about a Yorkie that needs rescued or a Yorkie pup for sale… But do tell me about your fur babies or puppies or other critters you love.

A Short Writing Lesson: Dogged by Guilt

Characterization and story set up doesn’t have to be difficult. Sometimes all it takes is a few well-chosen words and specific reactions. This is especially true when your character is dogged by guilt.

Every guilty person is his own hangman.

Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Who is Dogged by Guilt

Can you identify the antagonist, protagonist, and the story question in this video?

More than One Story

One way to see the story in the video is that the white dog is the protagonist and the guilty party. Trying to get away with wrong doing. The voice (presumably of the owner) is the antagonist.

Turn that around. Make the white dog the antagonist.

See how the same characters with different goals using guilt as the primary emotion can create two different stories? That is a sign that you have couple of complex characters.

Don’t get how being dogged by guilt can create great characters? Read Lies, Secrets, and Scars Create Better Characters.

What other writing lessons do you see in this video?


Thanks, loyal readers, for sticking with me. A deadline is looming and I must keep my focus on completing that project. Regular blogging will resume as soon as possible.