It's Going To The Dogs...

Well this post is, anyway. And not just any dog, but my dog! I have a gorgeous little Shihpoo (Shih tzu / Poodle) named Maggie. I got her from kijiji.com after I posted an ad saying that we were looking for an small, adult, non-shedding dog to keep my retired parents active. (Okay, I was so desperate for a dog, I was willing to take any measure needed). I didn't bother perusing all the other dogs being sold or given up on, because so many of them just said "take it, best offer." I hoped that by me posting an ad, someone who really cared who the new owner of their dog was would answer.

And has luck would have it, there was a woman out there who was waiting for someone to request a dog like her's. She didn't want to offer her dog up to just anyone. So she was holding out for a wanted ad. Fates collided, next thing we know she's bringing 4 year-old Maggie to our house for a visit.

You couldn't have trained Maggie to charm us better if you'd tried. She came in, and the first thing she did was jump up on my dad's lap. Normally my dad is afraid of dogs. Wary might be a better word. He doesn't know how to read them and is always concerned they might get aggressive. Not the case with Maggie. He was so delighted by the little goofball.

Then she jumped off him and up onto my mom's lap. My mom has never owned a dog and doesn't know much about them. I've seen other dogs go in her lap uninvited and she would stiffen, and look very uncomfortable. But with Maggie, my mom seemed a little surprised, and then was quite happy to pet her.

Her last turn was to come visit me on the floor. I had barely lifted my hand to pet her, and she was swung over on her back, looking for belly rubs. And of course, I melted.

We arranged a trial run that weekend with the owner. Needless to say, we called her on the Sunday and said "If you don't want to bother coming back, we'll take her." And the lady said "I don't have any emotional attachment to her... she's all yours."


Maggie on the first night at her new digs


We kept her name even though I'm not a fan because it was the only thing she did know.

Over the next few weeks I worked hard training her. I'm a huge advocate for positive training, and she learned fast. The hard part was (and remains to this day) to get my parents to remain consistent once I taught her something. Well at least I was consistent, and Maggie seemed to understand that I was the one with the rules-to-be-followed. I was also the one who let her share the bed. Bonus.

So that's Maggie's past. Now she is 8 years old and still the world's biggest sweetheart. She loves everyone, especially kids! She decided out of the blue for awhile there that she hated other dogs, but I've been arranging for her to socialize more and more and she's doing much better.

Maggie can be hilarious. Her arch rivals are squirrels. And they bait her so badly (I can be her witness to this). They climb along the front of the house and try to creep into the bird feeder before Maggie tries to tear down the window from the inside.


My "killer" girl protecting the house


Another favourite Maggie-ism is that she knows whether or not I am going downstairs to watch television or if I'm just grabbing something from the pantry or changing laundry loads. If I'm not watching tv, she won't follow me. Instead she lies at the top of the stairs with her nose pointed down and waits. Then when I go back up the stairs she does this stretch and waves her paw. She does it every single time, so I've taken it to mean that she's welcoming me back upstairs.

Other than that, Miss Maggie loves to play fetch with stuffed animals (squeaky ones!), and she loves to do tricks for treats, especially for cheese! But most of her day is spent snoozing away, preferably in the sun.



Lounging on the warm driveway

But of everything I love about her, and of all of her great qualities, my favourite thing about my little girl is that she's always there when I need her.




Visiting me in the hospital 2012