Look at that face! Who could resist such a sweet lovable little guy.?? No one! But let me share the real story of Teddy.
Theodore was born in 2004. He was my Christmas present. I was so excited to have him join our lives. What a tiny little guy, 7 lbs of bones. I had this crazy thought when he joined the family, he would sleep in his crate, go outside to pee and poop and eat dry dog food. Well, like any child, they tend to tell us what they will do. How terrible could it be if he sleeps under the covers, eat table food and pees on the rug ( big mistake to have puppy pads).
Teddy is a loner and prefers to have all the attention from me. He never plays, chasing a ball is totally foreign , he looks at it roll by and walks the other way. He rarely sits for his treat, he prefers me to throw the treat in the air, let it land and then he circles the treat like herding a cow as fast as possible, then grabs treat and runs to his bed to either hide it or eat it. Weird little dog!
When Teddy wants something, such as dinner, treats, or a walk, he starts to sneeze, shake his head,or jumps in your lap and paws you until you respond. He either wants a treat, ice cream, or maybe a filet or chicken. We are at the mercy of his desires. When Teddy starts this routine, I don’t hear the sneeze as much as I hear “Hey, guys, get up and get my dinner, but I really want ice cream before dinner”. The look he gives you because you selected dinner instead of ice cream, is priceless, a face of disgust, turns around and walks away. He goes to the couch and starts the sneezing again, until I walk back into the kitchen and pick another option, such as ice cream, he even walks away from that because its too cold. Next, it’s time for the walk. Is his halter on?, is it too cold?, put on his sweater, as he tries to wait patiently, he stammers back and forth, very excited. If I am too slow, the sneezing starts again, which actually he is saying, ” come on, lets go, I need to pee and smell every tree, every stone, corner of every bench, you better hurry or I will pee now” lets go!!
We are now in the park, he starts the peeing that seems to be endless. Teddy lifts his leg so high, he has fallen over, funny to watch him try to balance. He will stop his pee suddenly, lift his head high to view the entire park, looking for any undesirables, such as squirrels, rabbits, dogs, even a few people that gives him a bad vibe. Soon we are on our way again. The park is a circle with pave walks to the center. We walk each path, he is always on the pavement until he needs to pee, or chase a squirrel, then he jumps on the grass. This daily routine is fun for him and me. He listens to me complain about whatever and doesn’t seem to mind my whining, in fact, I don’t think he is listening. That’s a little hurtful.
Ted has been certified as my ESA (emotional support animal), πππ. He wears a collar that allows him to fly and stay in hotels. I have been thinking about this. I should wear the collar, I just realized I am his ESA companion.
I have to admit, I love that little tyrant!!!