Annie's Story - Part 2

Annie's Story - Part 2

Annie was a tiny dog with a big heart and huge personality. Wherever we lived and went, people would stop and fuss over her (she's so tiny; how adorable; oh, what a sweet baby!) before they'd even say hello to me, lol. Annie was everyone's friend. If I went outside without her, the neighbours wanted to know where Annie was.

She enjoyed the company of cats, and would lie down outside in the grass and rest with two that belonged to one of my neighbours. The older gray cat was her favourite; she always needed to check Annie out to make sure she was okay. It was the highlight of Annie's day to visit them before bedtime.

But let a dog walk by and Annie would morph into "Hulk Dog"! It didn't matter how big the dog was or the fact that she had no teeth and couldn't bite. Annie was not intimidated, and was prepared to bark, snarl, lunge and attack on sight - it's a good thing she was always on leash, lol. If she became too loud or obnoxious, I'd just scoop her up and give her a cuddle - and a distraction.

When Annie was recovering from her surgery she needed to take antibiotics - which she loved so much she got a bit addicted to them. At her final checkup, I told the Vet about this and asked his advice. The Vet said that if Annie was able to digest milk or ice cream, a bit of the vanilla probably wouldn't hurt her, so I tried that. The convenience store down the street served ice cream cones - chocolate for me, and a small dixie cup with a bit of vanilla for Annie. We'd sit outside the store on a bench and enjoy our special treat.

Boy, was that a hit!

One day I found Annie with her head in my teacup, drinking happily at my, by then, lukewarm tea. She loved it. From there on in, she insisted on having a spoonful of warm tea served to her in a little saucer when I had a cup of tea - yes, she was a spoiled little princess, and I loved her dearly, lol.

Because she was only a little-bitty thing and losing her hair in her old age, Annie was always cold. She had a full wardrobe of sweaters and a tiny sheepskin coat for the winter. I had no problem putting a sweater on her - but trying to take it off to wash it was a whole other story. It was the only time Annie showed her temper (other than attacking large dogs) - even if I had a clean one to put on her, she did not want me to take off the one she was currently wearing! These are a few of Annie's favourite sweaters - and yes, she had one for Halloween, and one for Christmas, too.

Annie's other favourite way to keep warm was to crawl under the blankets at night when we went to bed ... under the blanket I kept on the sofa for when I needed to rest during the day ... and failing that, up inside the sweater I was wearing!

I even had a tiny set of dog boots for her in the winter - she most certainly did not like those one little bit! By the time I got to her back feet, she had already kicked off the front ones, no matter how tightly I closed them. And if I did succeed in getting all four on, Annie simply sat down and refused to move. Little stinker, lol. I ended up giving her cute little blue boots away to a dog who would actually appreciate and wear them - and whose feet were small enough to fit.

One thing that Annie and I enjoyed the most was car rides. I carried one of those cardboard flats that hold cans that I picked up at a supermarket, placed a thick old towel in the bottom of it; then lined it with two blankets - one for Annie to lie on, and one to cover her up so she wouldn't catch a chill. We always drove with the windows down to enjoy the air, but I didn't want her to be cold, either.

We'd take off down to the park and have a picnic by the water, complete with blanket and basket of food; coffee for me and water for Annie. You know those bottled waters? I would fill that little cap with water for Annie to drink from - two or three capfuls was enough for her. A tiny bit of her own soft food, and a sandwich for me and we were set for hours. She enjoyed walking along the water's edge with me, as long as the water didn't go up past her feet too much - swimming was not something Annie enjoyed, although I would have loved to plunge in myself. Then we would rest on the blanket; Annie napping in the sun while I read or wrote or worked on drawings. I still miss those days.

... to be continued.

Annie's Story Part 1

Top photo taken by Todd Greening, Photographer; all other photos are my own or Google Images labeled for reuse.