Tag Archives: love

Shih Tzu Day 59: Running From Love

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Sleeping In Until 6

The shih tzus didn’t come up to get me until 6:00. At least it wasn’t 5:00, but for a Saturday, I would love to at least get to sleep until 7:00! I have to figure out a way to reprogram their inner clocks.

Since I didn’t want them to leave puddle on the carpet, I dragged myself out of bed. My idea was to have them go out and pee, but not feed them just yet. They danced around on the porch, thinking their meal was coming,  and then stood there staring at me for a while, before deciding that if I wasn’t going to feed them, they might as well run around the backyard for a while.

I brought them in, confused, and then went back upstairs. They weren’t about to let me alter their schedule, however, so they followed me up to make sure I wouldn’t forget them. I How can I be Mom's companion, if she keeps getting off the couch?gave up and went back down and fed them, giving John a few extra minutes to stay in bed.

We spent several hours setting up the connections to a castoff TV from John’s sister, Lynda. That meant that Dottie, Candy and Flower didn’t get much attention. When we were done, John took them outside and threw them some hot dog pieces. They enjoyed them much more than the rawhide treats I got them. If only hot dogs were good for them.

Candy Runs From Love

I'm still trying to figure out if I like this lap thing. Candy continues her tradition of staying upstairs in her room, since her spot in the dining room is no longer available to her.  Dottie spent as much time as she could on the couch with me, and Flower stayed in the Safe Zone, mainly on the hardwood floor, with her head on the blue dog bed. They are so much friendlier when John is at work. I sure wish they would act around John more like they act around me. Maybe one day.

At least they no longer have trouble taking treats from him. In fact, when John went outside with the sweet potato treats, Flower started to do her food dance, but stopped short. I think she forgot that she didn’t trust him and that it wasn’t me. Dottie and Flower came in when he did, but Candy stayed in the grass, sniffing around.

He ended up going out to get her. She ran around the yard, slowly, keeping out of his reach. Finally, however, she stopped a

nd crouched down, waiting for him to pick her up. He stayed outside with her for a while, sitting on the porch with her in his arms. He said she’s running from love, but I know we’ll catch her, sooner or later.

New Blog Header

I finally took a semi-decent picture of the girls sitting on their colorful blanket, so I have updated the blog header. Dottie gets my vote for most improved hair cut!

Original blog header

Shih Tzu Day 50: Learning to Get Love

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Bossy Flower

Flower is getting more and more bossy in the morning. This morning, she rushed upstairs and, with Dottie, made her usual stop on my side of the bed. She only stayed there for a minute or so before rushing to John’s side, where she proceeded to bark away. I still don’t know what it means. I expect it means that she wants him to get up. John says it means that she wants him to get up and get out of the house. When she came back to my side of the bed, she bit my hand more aggressively than usual. Although I don’t mind it, I did try to calm her down.

Learning to Get Love

Candy seems to trust John more every day.Candy came upstairs with her sisters this morning. When I reached my hand over the bed, she stood on her back paws and danced, waving her front paws in the air. She is so cute. She also did that last night when John was feeding them treats. She also came up to me this afternoon and stood still while I petted her. Flower sat a few feet away, watching the activity. Dottie came up a little later and nuzzled her head against my arm and leg.

Today, I was thinking about John saying that Flower doesn’t know how to get love. She also has trust issues. I think that’s true, but I think she is trying to learn. How do you train your dog to love? In the afternoon, she did come and put her nose on my feet and then let me pet her.

Flower’s favorite toy continues to be the plastic firemen I got from the Dollar Store. However, all but one of them have met their demise. I’ve stumbled across a variety of arms and legs lately, so there must be some bodies around here somewhere.

Shih Tzu Prelude: In Search of a Shih Tzu of My Own

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Candy, Flower and Dottie

Candy, a 2-year-old shih tzu

Off and on when I had looked at shih tzus online, I had looked at the Denver Dumb Friends League’s Quebec Street Shelter and Buddy Center, as well as local rescue centers. I recent read that the Dumb Friends League was charging only $50 for an adoption fee throughout the end of June. I looked at the site, but I didn’t see any shih tzus.

Another choice was the Colorado Shih Tzu Maltese & Lhasa Apso Rescue, but I cringed at the $300 adoption fee. Bella, the dog I had met at PetSmart, had been in the Evergreen Animal Protective League’s foster program, but they didn’t have any shih tzus on their site that were under 5. I had determined I wanted a dog at least that young.

I looked at Adoptapet.com and Petfinder.com. Each site showed a handful of shih tzus. Three shih tzus came up in Arvada, near me. They were listed by the BFF Rescue, a shelter that transfers homeless dogs from high kill shelters to foster homes until they can be adopted by a new “forever family.” Candy’s profile said she was born on 4/24/2009. That meant she was 2 years old. She was 11 pounds, which was average for a shih tzu. I read she was from a puppy mill. It also said that she had come to the BFF Rescue with her half sisters, Flower and Dottie. I read on that Candy was “still very shy and will need a lot of time and love in her new home.” Having a “shy” dog didn’t bother me. Joey had been shy. It said that Candy and Flower were very bonded and that the rescue was hoping to find them a home together.

Flower, a 2-year-old shih tzu from a puppy millDottie, 5 years old, is Candy and Flower's half sister.

With that in mind, I read Flower’s profile. Flower was  born on 4/13/2009 and was 14 pounds. Along with being shy, her profile said Flower was  “afraid of many things and would need a lot of love and understanding.” Her name made me think of Happy Flower, a dog I had seen on the Dumb Friends League’s site shortly after meeting Bella. this Flower, obviously, wasn’t yet “happy.” Maybe she could be, with the right person. But could that be me?

The adoption fee on either dog was $175, which wasn’t as good as the Dumb Friends League’s special, but was better than what I would spending going through the EAPL. I was definitely interested. I also stole a glance at the profile for Dottie. She was born on  9/17/2005, which made her 5 and a half years old. Although I had told myself I would look at dogs 5 years old and under, I still thought I wanted a younger one,  but she had a cute face. I read that she was also shy and afraid of many things, that she would need a lot of time and love and that she was good with other dogs and cats. It also said she would need another small dog in her new home.

I liked the fact that the dogs seemed to need each other. Our Yorkie was very possessive and never wanted other animals near us or her. I picked up the phone and called the number given for Delores at BFF Rescue, hoping to speak to her about Candy and Flower.