Oh RT I was just thinking this same thing! The Pup is so well taken care of and showered with love, it hurts me sometimes wishing that someone loved and cared for me the way I love and care for him.

OK I'd rather be a cat. They get all that but can still ignore the person providing it if they're in the mood.

LOL, AG! I like that! However my cat doesn't get to go outside and she is exiled downstairs because one of the terrorist upstairs dogs wants to eat her.

As for moods, one of my dogs is neurotic. One is the dog equivalent of a dumb blonde. And the third one (the terrorist) is smart, loyal, loving and very high maintenance (think doggie diapers - ug!).

I actually used to have educational statuses and religions figured out for each of my dogs. There used to be the Catholic nun who had to drop out of school but then went back to get her GED. Then there was the Methodist who had a college degree. And there was the Buddhist with a high school education. (Those dogs are all gone now.) The dumb blonde referenced above is a high school drop out and she'll go to whatever church you're going to - it's just a social thing after all.

If I was a dog... hmmm... I'd be an atheist with a masters degree. Oh yeah. I AM an atheist with a masters degree.

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Hi RT!
Love hearing about your dogs. Is the terrorist a terrier? Just wondered b/c I've had many terriers and "terrorist" and I did call them "fox terrorist," "scottish terrorist," etc.

My family used to have this beautiful, beautiful dog (not a terrorist), cars would screech to a halt to look at her, ask what she was, etc. My mom said it was like walking an 18 year old Elizabeth Taylor. She also smelled like flowers all the time, it was amazing. But poor thing was horribly neurotic, usually a nervous wreck. She was on a pretty high dose of Prozac but still somewhat limited in functioning. She would have been in analysis and have had a drinking problem. Actually one Christmas she did drink my entire white russian.

My present dog is another terrorist, and is freakishly smart and demanding (and charismatic). I don't know about religion, but she would have a master's and would be in upper management, eventually a CEO.

peanut - what kind of dog was everyone stopping to see?

my terrorist is a miniature pincher.

i did have a terrier - she was the Catholic nun... as in school teacher with a ruler. She'd be in the bedroom sleeping and the other three dogs would be in the living room, carrying on, playing, barking. She'd stalk out of the bedroom and into the living room. Then "bark, bark, bark." Too much frivolity. The other dogs immediately stopped what they'd been doing, looking like three guilty kids. Then she'd turn around and go back to the bedroom.

She was on Zoloft, if I remember correctly. Our vet's wife was a pharmaceutical rep and we'd get free samples for the dog. She also had acupuncture for her "crankiness." Don't think it helped. (Although acupuncture did help another dog.) She also was a breast cancer survivor. We found her in the woods behind our house and she was almost dead. Took her to our vet where they discovered the cancer. She had about 8-9 tumors. The vet did some reconstructive surgery to give her nipples after all the surgery, because he didn't want her to have a complex. She made it past the 5 year mark, so she really was a survivor.

OMG, RT, ROTFL!!! I thought I had heard it all (and done it all) re: veterinary treatment, but I can't compete with reconstructive surgery!! It warms my heart to think of the care you gave the little nun. And her ability to control the other dogs totally fits for a terrier.

Our beauty queen was a bearded collie. Her hair never got messed up, she was white and grey, and the white parts never got dirty. The breeder had a birthday party when all of the dogs turned 1, and all of the puppies came (there were maybe 7?) None of the others had her "look" - all the people said "how come ours doesn't look like that??!!"

By the way, we had a terrier at the same time as the beauty queen, and the terrier could make the beauty queen get up and leave the room just with a look.

all of my little dogs have thought they were big german shepherds. little dog complex, i guess.

your bearded collie sounds beautiful!

does your current terrorist run your life?

and as for veterinary care... one year a friend of ours who worked at the clinic called to tell us that they'd just closed their books for the year and we'd been the clinic's number one customer. Gads! That was the year we put all three of the vet's kids through parochial school.

(((RT)))

So, you found a half dead catholic nun (aren't they all? Catholic, not half dead!!) in the woods behind your house! You took her to your vet?? where they discovered breast cancer and the vet reconstructed her nipples!! I'm not surprised the poor mendicant dear ended up on Zoloft!! But barking at the dogs? Was she nuts?

I think I've misunderstood something here or else I've got heat stroke

RT! Glad to hear from you!!
We had 2 dogs before we had kids & did a lot of foster dogs. By the time out DD was 1 we were dogless Both of our dogs came back to us in the form of children.
Our SPCA special was the alpha dog. She's bark from the bed telling us to come to bed w/her. Our later adopted Boxer was the biggest lover ever & just wanted to crawl under your skin & sleep. She was a "fireplace dog" like in Chevy Chase's movie about living in the country. His dog's tail would catch on fire & he'd have to move it out of the way.
My eldest DD is the alpha & bossy pants in the family. She's physically & verbally dominant. My 2nd DD is the lover & basically does what her older sis says w/little barking back. She'll cuddle for hrs. My DS is a combination of them both so I figure our next dog will be like him.
I swear they were reincarnated!

i wish i was in a house with a working air-conditioner!