My sister seems to have had that particular urge pulled out from under her.
Thank goodness. She--despite my continual, "people-who've-had-'em"-derived cautions to her--had signed up for a retired greyhound at the dog-getting place there in Mobile, but in a stroke of terrible fortune (for her, not the dog) the agency adopted her dog out to someone else. By mistake? Maybe? Who knows. But it really soured her on the whole deal.
Rebound choice?
::sigh::
Why she is so dead set on getting a dog, I cannot fathom, and how she went from greyhound to papillon is likewise something I cannot understand. She even has decided to bring it with her to work for the first few weeks until it's older. Yeah, I know--SUCH A FLAMIN' GREAT IDEA! If you can't care for it at home well enough, bringing it to a DOCTOR'S OFFICE is surely a winner, right?
She seemed not to discern my level of sarcasm when I said that to her.
Anyway, just called her at work because she didn't have my e-mail address and had left a message last night for me to call so she could share with me some pictures of her new baby boy. Had to speak to her nurse first, of course. (Miss Melanie is quite a hoot--I might have to call back and talk to her just for fun.)
But, enough of that--in one last effort to place doubts in her mind about the wisdom of acquiring yet another animal to tend, I took this tack. In my best manly man voice, I said: "You know, I know those tiny flouncy dogs do find a way to procreate, but come on--think how embarrassing it must be to be a male papillon! You need to think about that--what could he grow up to be!? A hair stylist? A decorator!?"
Without missing a beat, my sister added, "An architect?"
"Uhhhh--I...dangitall!"
Hoist by my own petard! ::shakes fist at phone::
Oh well.
Pictures forthcoming when she gets a chance to send some. Maybe if nothing else I can get her to name him Steve McQueen.
Posted by Terry Oglesby at September 18, 2006 12:42 PMNice dog! How about them Tigers?
Posted by: Larry Anderson at September 18, 2006 01:37 PMWell, even more important than that, Larry's back from his road trip!! Welcome back!
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at September 18, 2006 01:44 PMWhy, thank you sir! It is nice to be back.
Posted by: Larry Anderson at September 18, 2006 01:47 PMHey! What do you have against little dogs, huh???
FWIW, a well-bred Papillon is actually a terrific little dog -- loads of personality, and not much of that quivering, trembling stuff that seems to afflict so many small dogs these days. (That is usually due to poor breeding and improper socialization anyway, and not really a breed-specific problem...)
Posted by: Grouchy Old Yorkie Lady at September 18, 2006 02:40 PMWell, nothing really, other than she's not in the best situation to have a dog of any sort, and I've always been partial to small outdoor dogs like Spitzes.
But what you mention about their lack of trembliness is one of the things I noticed when I read up on them that marks them in good stead with me. I just wonder how long it will be before her cats will come out of hiding...
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at September 18, 2006 03:18 PMGreyhounds tremble as well, for that matter.
Glad she decided on a dog, hope it works out well.
Posted by: kitchen hand at September 19, 2006 09:09 PMThanks, Kitchen Hand--I'm just glad she found a breed that isn't quite so high-maintenance. She's still set on bringing it to work with her, though. I suggested that she should mention this article, and see how that would fly with her partners. (Not well, I imagine!)
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at September 19, 2006 09:36 PMIt's the thin end of the wedge, Terry. They'll be wanting carer leave when they get sick, compassionate leave when they dies and special leave for pet birthdays.
PS: I keep forgetting to comment via permalink. I'll try harder.
Posted by: kitchen hand at September 19, 2006 11:09 PMYou're probably a lot closer than anyone would ever think...
As for the comment/permalink thing--I apologize again for that, but I've never figured out why one comment box does something different from another. It is a lot easier to use the permalink since it will remember your info so you don't have to keep entering it.
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at September 19, 2006 11:47 PMThanks, Terry. And don't apologise (it's 's' in Australia). I love it when permalinks remember me. Even my own brothers and sisters don't send birthday cards any more.
(And ignore the 's' on the end of die in my previous comment.)
Posted by: kitchen hand at September 20, 2006 12:11 AMLook, I have enough trouble writing in American--don't start throwing in English on me!
Posted by: Terry Oglesby at September 20, 2006 07:56 AM