I Cannot Imagine Life Without a Dog!

I'm sure you've heard the old saying,  "Every boy needs a dog."  In my opinion almost everyone needs a dog.  I can't imagine life without one.  Now, before some of you get your feathers ruffled I need to clarify that.  Really everyone doesn't need a dog because there are people who hate dogs.  I wouldn't want them to have the meanest, most vicious dog around.  I'll just say most people would be a lot happier, and the world would be a better place, with dogs in good homes who would love and care for them.

And that leads me into my latest post......

Our 17 year old Cocker Spaniel died in June 2008. She was more Doyal’s baby than mine, but I loved her from the day I gave her to him as a 38th anniversary present. Neither of us were ready to fill that void in our lives for awhile. As the months rolled by I realized that I needed another fur baby. I began searching for just the perfect dog as I knew the time would come for him as well as it would for me.

 

Here is Annie at age 7 years old, 10 years before she died.

I wanted a small dog, one that didn’t shed and was not likely to cause allergies (several of our family members suffer from allergies). I also wanted one who was not high energy. Remember we are older than most who get a puppy and we don’t seem to be getting any younger as the days roll into months. I also wanted a dog that was good with all ages. Finally after about a month or two of searching the Internet I came to the conclusion that a Shih Tzu would be the perfect dog to fit the qualifications I had laid out. We were visiting our daughter and family in Oklahoma at the time and I searched in and around Oklahoma City to no avail. Our next stop was a couple of weeks with another daughter in Batesville, Arkansas. She knew someone who knew someone so we called. The lady had just sold her last puppy from the last litter and was not expecting anymore for a few months so my hopes were shattered on getting a puppy in Arkansas. Our next stop was Huntsville, Alabama. I should have known that all good things come from the Heart of Dixie and sure enough we found our pride and joy.

It is a long and rather humorous story that I’ll share personally if anyone is interested. But, long story short 3 ½ month old, Sweet Dixie Lailai, The Belle of Boaz came into our family around 11:00 p.m. on July 6, 2009. We didn’t name her for several weeks as nothing quite fit. Doyal called her Sweets all that time. We asked for suggestions that would suit her Southern heritage and one of our grandsons-in-law came up with the name Dixie. We kept the Sweet in her name and added Lailai which means small in Fijian. And she is the Belle of Boaz as she came from Boaz, Alabama.

Here we are with Dixie early morning July 7th (just after midnight) when we came back to Claudia's.  You can tell we are all three already in love with that little fur ball.

 

Soon after we arrived home in Indiana we entered her in Puppy Training classes, then Intermediate classes and then Advanced (two different levels). She graduated all of them with flying colors, took her Therapy Dog test and became a certified Therapy Dog. She now brings joy to our local nursing home as well as other places. I’ll share another time how and why she attends Wednesday night Bible classes.

Dixie's very first class July 24, 2009.  Ben is already teaching her to sit.

 

Here she is November 12, 2009 giving Ben a kiss for her certificate from Intermediate Class.

As she was going through these classes a friend of mine asked why I wanted to qualify her to be a Therapy dog. I told him what all she would be able to do and where she could go....nursing homes, hospitals, schools, etc.

 

Here is Dixie waiting to visit her friends at RidgeWood Care Center.

"Why in the world would you want to take a dog to a nursing home?" He almost shouted.

I began explaining how dogs cheered people up and before I could continue he broke in and said, "If I ever go to a nursing home I would want to go to one where dogs and children are not allowed."

I was horrified! I cannot imagine being anywhere and never seeing an animal or a child. I cannot imagine not having the joy of touching and loving on a pet or hugging a child. I did let him know if he goes to a nursing home Dixie, nor our Bible class children will come to see him.

I’m happy to say that he has changed his mind about both the children and Dixie.

So, now you have met Dixie. I told Doyal when we named her if I got a dog up North I would name it Mason (Mason/Dixon line) never intending to get another dog....NEVER.

These pictures taken September 21, 2013

I’ll tell you all about Mason in a later post. :)

Mark 9:36-37 He took a little child and had him stand among them. Taking him in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." NIV

Psalm 71:9 Do not cast me away when I am old; do not forsake me when my strength is gone. NIV