TEX


It was love at first sight of this short-haired, eight-
week-old Texas Heeler pup, with gorgeous dark eyes,
who looked out of place, with all the long-haired black 
and white siblings. I knew I had to buy him.


My husband suggested the name Tex, since he was a 
Texas Heeler, for this puppy's tiny, pudgy, warm 
body, and Texie boy he became.


As soon as Tex woke up, he was a wriggly ball of energy
 that didn't stop until he suddenly plopped his furry body down 
and fell asleep. The white tip of Tex's tail constantly waved madly 
asking for attention and wanting to play. At first, Tex's life was 
full of eating, playing, tummy rubs, and cuddles on his 
human mama's lap.


It was a big transition for Tex, suddenly going from a large
family surrounded by lots of brothers and sisters to
being the only puppy.  He quickly adopted Lady as his next
doggy mom, always staying close by her side. Gentle Lady
became the perfect mother, playing with Tex, letting him
sleep on top of her, and teaching him doggy manners.

, 

Tex was only half-grown when Lady suddenly died with a 
massive stroke. He mourned the loss of his adopted mother
 and seemed lost without her. So, I began training Tex each day to 
sit, lie down, heel, and hardest of all, to stay. My Texas Heeler 
had so much energy, along with a definite mind of his own. 


As Tex grew into adulthood, we took long walks in the woods;
rather I walked while he ran. Tex was quite intelligent, always 
wanting to check out what I was doing when gardening and 
working outside. What Tex loved most, besides tummy rubs,
 was chasing a ball or a Frisbee. 


Tex grew into a gorgeous adult dog with marked coloring showing 
his good breeding. Nothing escaped his sharp eye. Tex was a good watchdog. He loved chasing squirrels and even caught them 
sometimes. Tex would catch and kill mice or rats around the 
chicken and duck pens. His idea of herding, though, was to run
directly into the middle of a huddle of chickens or ducks. 


Even grown, Tex still thinks that he fits on my lap. He is great 
at keeping wildlife off our property. Tex has helped me chase 
off more than one bear that has climbed over the fence.
We have to tie him up when the chickens or ducks are loose
though, as Tex has a bad habit of trying to chew on them, 
despite being disciplined over and over for it. Did I mention that 
Tex is a tad stubborn. Oh, yes, life remains quite 
interesting with Texie boy around.





 









 




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

SHEP and TASHA

Image
We got two eight-week-old German Shepherd pups from   someone who  bred German Shepherds.  While both had golden  legs,  chests, and necks. Shep had the darkest  face. Natasha, whom we called Tasha, the sister, had more golden  highlights. At  first,  we made a pen in our dining room for these  two   fat,  furry puppies, but within a month, we had to move them outside as Shep and Tasha grew so fast. From their very first winter, my pups loved the snow. Their thick, coarse fur kept them nice and warm. They just couldn't understand why their human mama didn't  live outside too, when playing in the snow was so much fun. Shep and Tasha both were full of energy and loved running in the  woods  and around our two-acre property line, even when small. As they grew, I could always spot Tasha, even from  a  distance, because one or both of her ears would flop over. My German Shepherds were double trouble whe...
Read more

SANDY

Image
  Sandy was chosen by our son, Dwight, who had inherited severe hemophilia.  He asked for a dog every so often during his eleven years growing up, but to me, I was already run off my feet dealing with Dwight's internal painful bleeds that averaged one to two a week. I thought dogs were big, took lots of care, and were a trouble to have. I was a cat person.  At my wits' end, trying to decide what to do after two knee surgeries had gone bad to correct chronic internal bleeds that kept flaring up,  I remembered Dwight's wish for a dog.   By now, Dwight had to use a wheelchair or crutches to get around, his left knee was stiff and bent, and he spent the days doped up from constant pain meds needed to keep his pain under control. I missed my fun-loving, hyper boy and desperately wanted him back. The orthopedic surgeon had given us six weeks before he insisted on doing another knee surgery. I ached to see the spark of life once more in Dwight's eyes. So, I agreed to g...
Read more

LUCY LOU

Image
How could one dog who was abandoned, found shaking in the middle of a road beside another dog that had been run over, and rescued, still have so much capacity for love? I didn't just adopt Lucy Lou; she adopted me and changed my life. Her beautiful dark brown eyes didn't miss a thing; from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning until she slept beside me in bed at night. Lucy Lou loved tummy rubs... being outside with me as I worked in my gardens... begging for food; if you ate it, she thought she needed some too... and playing in the snow even when it was higher than her. In short, Lucy Lou loved life! Lucy Lou was also great at posing for pictures. I have so many photos of her taken through the years. I even used photos of her in some of my weekly cooking,  newspaper  column. But when she had had enough posing and primping, Lucy Lou would plop down with a sigh and let me know that enough was enough. She was dog tired. Lucy Lou got along with all the other pets that cam...
Read more