“A dog has the soul of a philosopher.â€Â
~Plato
This past May our family experienced something that we all hoped to never have to experience. We had to choose whether or not to put our dog to sleep. Razz was a dog that we met back in 1998 when we moved to the Kansas City area from Tulsa, OK. We were introduced to James and Julie and Razz was their dog. He fast became our daughter Tori’s best friend.
Tori had been asking repeatedly for a dog and we used the standard excuse that unless we had a fenced in yard we would not be getting a dog. Fast forward to the year 2001 and we are home owners with a fenced in yard and a daughter looking to hold our feet to the fire. James and Julie came to the rescue offering to let us adopt Razz. They had several young children and Razz wasn’t getting any younger and they felt he would do better in our home. For the next 5+ years Razz was our very own bundle of joy. He provided countless hours of companionship and fun for our family. In May he had a stroke which severely affected his whole body and after trying certain meds and helping him to eat and drink for 3 or 4 days we realized that he just wouldn’t get better and his quality of life was at an all time low. So we made that sad trip to the vet.
For the past several months both Tori and Mary have been steadily working on me/working me over about getting a dog. I resisted. Partly, I believe, in loyalty to Razz and partly because I wanted a break from the demands of pet ownership. However, last week I decided to try to adopt a dog my daughter was interested in. I was too late, however, as he had already been taken by another family. I did tell Mary though that I had tried to get him. On Friday after work I noticed that Mary had sent me links on a few dogs. The first one I checked was Charlie and I instantly fell in love. I emailed the shelter and within an hour they had called me and we were on our way to see him. I was pretty sure I wanted him, sight unseen, but when he walked into the room and laid his head on my chest I was sold! He needed to be “altered”, so we could not pick him up until last night. Needless to say it was a long day at work waiting to go pick Charlie up.
But, pick him up we did and we are all so thrilled to have him as a part of our family! Thus far he is even sweeter than he was on our multiple visits to the shelter to see him and he seems to have adapted right away to our family and our home.
“The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself with him and not only will he not scold you, but he will make a fool of himself too.â€Â
~Samuel Butler
Sidenote: I took the day off Monday to relax and recuperate from a hard week at work but spent the day instead being very productive out in the yard, cleaning beds, trimming bushes, mowing, fixing the gate…all in preparation for Charlie’s arrival. Out in our back yard we had an old stump that was rotten and I decided it would be a good time to pull it apart and get rid of it. So, I grabbed a garden implement and started breaking off sections of it. On the second go, without warning, a swarm of bees poured out from the stump and began telling me, in no uncertain terms, just how unhappy they were with my renovation of their summer home. I don’t believe any neighbors were home, so no one was there to witness what I am sure was a comical scene as I ran flailing to the front of the house and into the garage. Thinking I was safe I paused in the garage only to be stung again. Cursing and running I got into the house, again ready to heave a sigh of relief, only to discover, thanks to another painful sting, that a bee was down the back of my shirt. More cursing and the hasty removal of my shirt followed, along with some cathartic beating of said shirt and bee. So, I woke up Tuesday with huge welts on my body from multiple stings and have been quite itchy, sore, and miserable since then. It is a good thing that Charlie is so darn cute as it makes the pain worthwhile.
Anyway, the adoption of Charlie is the exciting news that I wanted to share with you today! Hooray for us! Having a dog around again feels so right and I am sure we have years of fun and laughter ahead.
“Every dog is a lion at home.â€Â
~H. G. Bohn
Charlie will be 10 months old tomorrow and shouldn’t grow much bigger than he is now. He is thought to be a rat terrier/italian greyhound mix but the shelter wasn’t sure. He seems very intelligent and can leap like a jackrabbit. He is such a reckless jumper that we have to make sure he doesn’t take flying leaps over the back of the couch and hurt himself. He is newly fixed and thus can sing the high notes with the best of them and he is very affectionate and yet calm for a puppy, he would rather stand next to you, or on you, than jump up and down on you which is very nice. We are in love.
Tomorrow or Friday, depending upon how much time I have, another R.I.P. II contest announcement will be coming your way. In preparation you might want to be dusting off the ol’ camera!
Thanks for allowing me to share our joy with you!
“If you don’t own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life.â€Â
~Roger Caras
Charlie is adorable and very photogenic!
Hope your bee stings go down quickly.
Oh…what a cutie!! At our household, the order of the day is Large dogs!! I don’t know what we would do with one so small!! If you haven’t read the book Marley and Me by John Grogan, you really should! It’s a fantastic look into the life of a dog owner!
Oh…. Charlie looks absolutely adorable! Here’s wishing you all many years of enjoying each others company!
Congratulations! He looks like a lovely addition to your family.
Sincerest Congratulations to you all! Charlie is just as cute as they come! It’s so nice to hear the joy in your “voice” as you talk about him, and I suspect the rest of your family is just as elated as you. So happy Charlie found his way to your family!
And I really hope you’re feeling better soon! Yikes.
Ohh I love Charlie! He’s animated!! I bet he will not only love his new family but bring lots of laughter to you too!!
I live with many cats at my brothers but have had both cats and dogs along the way.. the love from animals is so unconditional.. something we learn from them!
I’ve been lucky and had a chance to meet Charlie already and he is wonderful dog. I have no doubt Mike and Abbey that he and Motley will become fast friends.
Your new baby is too cute for words. I’m a firm believer that when the time is right, the right animal finds the right person.
Incidentally, I had a similar incident involving wasps a couple years ago and found it most unpleasant. Benadryl, Tylenol and ice packs were my best friends for about a week.
He is a dote. I was just going to ask if you knew what mix he was, from the photos I was think Jack Russell mixed with some form of greyhound. V cute.
Charlie is adorable!!! Look at those ears! Awwww…I’m glad he found you…and you him.
Eeek about the bees, tho, I’d’ve been screaming LOL!
He’s cute!
I don’t actually technically own a dog. My aunt-in-law had a brain anuerism so they stay mainly at her mom’s house and hubby and I take care of their home and their 9 dogs. Yes, 9. Eight fully grown boxers and one skittish (except around me) 13 year old fox hound.
AWW!! CHARLIE IS SO CUTE-CAN’T WAIT TO MEET HIM WHEN WE VISIT IN NOVEMBER. HOPE THE POTTY TRAINING IS GOING WELL. SEEING THAT PICTURE OF RAZ MADE ME TEAR UP A LITTLE.
HOPE THE ITCHING IS GETTING BETTER ,CARL-DID YOU GET THE REST OF THE STUMP OUT? LOVE YOU!!
What an incredible dog! Congrats on the new addition 🙂 I’ve had dogs my whole life and I’m sorry, once again, to hear about Razz. That’s such a hard thing to go through and you can never “replace” a pet…it would be like replacing a family member. So I understand your sentiment. Razz’s memories will always remain and they will be his unique memories!
Charlie just looks like such a bundle of everything good! There’s nothing quite like the feeling of welcoming a new pet into the household. When we got Buddy, every morning was Christmas morning again for me as I went to check on him 🙂 So a big “Hello!” to Charlie.
And sorry to hear about the bee stings 🙁 Though I must admit that you gave me a few laughs….
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!! So adorable. He certainly looks like he has some greyhound in him! I hope he brings your family many years of joy.
He is sooooo cute! I love him already even though I won’t be able to meet him until the weekend. Hopefully Motley likes him and vice versa.
I am really happy that you guys found a dog. He has very beautful coloring & looks like he will be a lot of fun. I’m sure Motley will be jealous that he won’t be receiving all the attention when coming to spend the night!
Congrats on your new baby!!!!
So very adorable! I’m glad he found a good home with you and your family. 🙂
AW!! he looks kinda like a basenji, I wish we had a dog but we have to content ourselves with cats.
He is adorable! Yes, when the time was right we were ready to get another dog. Charlie is a wonderful addition to our family.
Oh he is positively adorable!
I wish my dad was as easy to convince to get another dog as you were. We’ve been trying for 2-3 years now, and he still is against it. It’s a pity as he’s home all alone most of the day since I’ve moved out and my mom works all day – he could certainly use the kind of companionship only a dog can give!
Sorry about the bee stings!
Charlie’s so cute!
He does look sweet, and full of character.
We can’t have dogs or cats (we’re both deeply allergic) but are eagerly awaiting the birth of some baby guinea pigs; we’re hoping to adopt two. Fingers crossed that the mother HAS two of the same sex. It’ll be so good to have the little furry beans around again.
Good for you for adopting a dog from the shelter and not buying a purebreed. Mutts are just as good, just as cute, and just as deserving of love.
Bummer about the bees.
Charlie is certainly adorable! And Razz would approve. Dogs are like that. They want us to be happy, even if that means letting another dog fill that empty spot they leave behind in our souls when they make the journey to the Rainbow Bridge ahead of us.
cjh
That would have been a perfect segway into my reading challenge, which I was wondering if you remembered you joined. :p
Very cute dog! I really want to get another one, but I am waiting to see what the next chapter of my life will be. 🙂
I love those long legs and his beautiful blue eyes. I’m so happy for all of you. He certainly did pick a great home to go to. Also hope you’re starting to feel better. I started to get you the Marley book, but I was afraid it would make me feel sadder when Razz died. I heard it’s wonderful.
What a cuite pie!! I feel youe sense on loss on losing Razz. Tara, my sister, was a white boxer and we had to put her down 2 weeks ago this Friday. I was with her until her very last breath. She was born a deaf albino. She was pure love for 9.5 years. Each day when I visit my parents house, I still look up at the window where she would keep watch only to find her missing. It is just like losing a family member. I would so love to meet Charlie one day.
Congrats on the new family member!
He is lovely – the Italian Greyhound part is a wonderfully elegant and loving doggie – never heard of a rat terrier, but terrier’s general are fun play animals.
You are in for some entertaining times 🙂
“A philosopher has the soul of a dog.â€Â
~Pluto (probably!)
It takes a while, when you say goodbye to a loved pet. My dogs all have a place in my heart – one more than all the others – but after that grieving period is over, the hole is too big to leave unfilled.
aw charlie is so cute!! 🙂
and i’m so sorry for razz… its not right. i sincerely wish they could live forever – or at least as long as we do.
Oh wow. I admit I’m more of a cat person than a dog person, but he’s a real cutie! I’m so glad you have him. And sorry to hear about razz… our cats are only six and still sometimes I think with some melancholy upon how much shorter their lives will be than ours (I’ve already lost two cats while I was in college).
Three cheers for Charlie!!! Now if you could just pass along the word about how wonderful house dogs are, I would really appreciate it. I’ve been working on the boyfriend for some time, and I shall triumph!!
I…can’t…catch my…breath. Man, warn us when you’re about to write about crotch shots, face plants or bee stings. Sorry about those bees. Yeah I agree with Fence, that dog has a little Jack in him and hearing about how he jumps and bounds, yeah that has all the spasticity of a Jack Russell. Good looking dog and we will all forever miss Raz.
What a great dog! He has such a sweet face. How wonderful you found each other. 🙂
So sorry to hear about the bee stings. Thank goodness you aren’t allergic! Here’s to Benadryl and itch-free nights!
Sorry to hear about the bees and about Razz. We had to have our Schipperke, Bear, put to sleep a few years back on Valentine’s day. 🙁 One of the hardest things we’ve ever had to face. Still haven’t gotten another dog and I don’t know if we will.
I’m glad you have found your Charlie. He looks wonderful!
Awwww…you guys are all so awesome! Thanks for the positive pet feedback. Razz is certainly smiling down and appreciating the well wishes…he is indeed missed, even moreso as Charlie does things that remind us of Razz.
Charlie is doing so great with everything that we are all kind of in shock and wondering if it is too good to be true. He is absolutely wonderful and so much fun.
The bee stings are FINALLY getting better. My right arm looked like it was gonna swell up and burst for a few days but it is looking mostly back to normal now.
Kailana, don’t worry, I didn’t forget about the challenge and Marley and Me sounds like one I want to check out. At least one of my planned R.I.P. reads will cross over into the Four legged Friends challenge and I think I may have to pull out My Dog Skip again and read it as it has been way too many years since I’ve read that wonderful book.
I love you all, thanks!
Charlie looks so adorable 😀
I understand not wanting a new pet out of a feeling of loyalty to a deceased one…I have felt that way after losing some of my cats. But in the end giving in is always worth it. I am sure Charlie will bring your family endless joy.
As a dog companion, this looks like a perfect match! Our 2 dogs “own” us as much as we own them….
Thanks for bringing Charlie to visit. He is wonderful! And I loved the interaction between he and Janie through the door.
He is so cute! I just want to bite those ears and kiss the nose.
Sorry to hear about Razz. He was a good dog, smart as a whip.
But Charlie seems to be a great successor! Dogs are so great. 😀
I am so behind in catching up with your blog and the going ons of Carl. I am so so sorry to hear about Razz. I currently own my 1st dog ever and can’t even think of “that” day without my heart breaking. I am glad, very glad to see that Charlie melted your heart and is part of your home.
Good to hear from you Michelle. I don’t wish ‘that day’ on anyone and so I hope it is long in coming with your dog.
He was great Rob, wasn’t he?
Ahhhh. . . I’m late reading this. I will always miss Razz. He was my best buddy for many years. He was a great Valentine’s Day gift. I hope we can get another good dog like him someday. Thanks for adopting him when life got overwhelming for me. You gave him the best of everything.
I am so happy for all of you. Charlie is a sweetie. You were meant to be together.
Thank you Jules! Razz was the best gift our family has ever been given. I was thinking about him today while I was taking Charlie for a walk, wishing he was still around. We miss him terribly.
Ahhhhh! I am so glad you “broke down” and got Tori another dog. Charlie looks adorable!! Can’t wait to meet him someday.
He is sooo cute and photogenic… I have an Italian greyhound/rat terrier and they look like they could be twins!
I just googled italian greyhound rat terrier mix to see hat they looked like. We have a rescue pup and that mix is our best guess. The pics look just like my Radar, right down to the enormous ears! Behavior description is also the same. Thanks for confirming my suspicions on our pup’s heritage!