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Fluffy:
4 months old |
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Fluffy
meets Charlie for the first time! |
FLUFFY'S PUPPY STORY
When my oldest son was 8 years old he had his heart set on getting an
American Eskimo puppy for a pet. My husband Lee and I went into a pet
store and were surprised to see they had one. When I picked her up, she
started to cuddle, tucking her head under my chin! We took her home the
very same day. My three children unanimously agreed to name the new member
of our family Fluffy, because she looked like a big ball of white fluff!
Unfortunately, Fluffy was not very well when we first got her. I took
her to a see a vet and he recommended that I take her back to the pet
store and ask for my money back! She was having difficulty with her stomach
and the vet said it was likely going to be a life-long problem. I called
a friend who had a dog who had a similar problem to Fluffy. She also told
me not to keep her. She said her dog had never really been healthy and
it had caused a lot of heartache for her family.
We were already head over heels in love with Fluffy. I wasn't ready to
give up. I decided to get a second opinion and took Fluffy to a different
vet. He recommended changing her dog food. He had a dog food for dogs
with very sensitive stomaches. There were no guarantees but it was worth
a try. We started to feed Fluffy the new dog food and hoped for the best.
Fluffy showed steady improvement! We were so relieved as her health improved.
Fluffy was adorable, smart and fast! She didn't run, she
zoomed! Our next problem was trying not to lose her! She was so tiny,
she kept slipping out of her leash and then she'd zoom away! Chasing her
only added to her fun! We soon learned, sometimes the hard way, that even
though it was impossible to catch her, she always came home! She has been
a treasured member of our family ever since!
CHARLIE'S
PUPPY STORY
When Fluffy was 7 years old, my husband Lee and I were going for a drive
in the country in search of a new/used car. It was a snowy Thanksgiving
day and we were about half way to our destination when Lee noticed a dog
by the side of the lonely highway. It was a cold, wet day and we were
worried the dog would get hit by a car, so we turned our car around and
went back to get what Lee guessed was a little Cocker Spaniel.
As we pulled up beside the dog, it rose up out of the ditch. I say rose
up because it was massive! Instead of the cute little Cocker Spaniel we
were expecting, a huge, mud-caked, burr-covered Bouvier looked up at us.
She walked towards us with an elegance as if to say, "I may be filthy,
but I still have my dignity!" At her side was an equally mud-caked, burr-covered
little puppy!
As she made herself at home in the back of our van, we circled the puppy
to try and catch him. Fluffy had given us a lot of practise with this,
so it did not take long until the puppy was in the van too!
The nearest town was Rosenort. We drove in and left a notice on the bulletin
board at the local grocery store. We took both dogs home with us, cleaned
them up and introduced them to Fluffy. Fluffy became instant friends with
the little puppy.
On the dogs' third day with us we received a phone call from a woman who
had lost her dog. She lived on a farm near Rosenort and had seen our sign
when she went into town. She told us her Bouvier had run away with one
of her nine puppies! We told her we would drive out with the dogs the
next day!
The Bouvier's name was Bianca. She was pretty happy to see her puppies
again. Her owner said they were looking for homes for the puppies and
asked if we would like to keep the puppy we had found. We had already
fallen in love with him, so of course we said yes!
My niece Chlesea said he looked like a Charlie and we all agreed. Charlie
adored Fluffy and followed her everywhere she went. He was easy to train,
because he did whatever Fluffy did. He liked to cuddle up to Fluffy when
he went to sleep and loved playing with her every waking minute! They
would chase each other outside and play tug of war with the doggy toys
inside the house. Charlie's favourite toy was a little Tigger stuffed
animal. He carried in his mouth everywhere and even slept with it.
Fluffy has taken care of Charlie from the moment he came into our house.
She tells him what to do and he does it! Even though Charlie has grown
to be twice, or is it three times, as big as Fluffy, he still looks up
to her! They are best pals!
BY PAT HARRISON
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