When I was little everyone around me had dogs. Dogs never liked me much. Our first dog, Trouble, used to growl at me but she loved my sister. So, I decided to adopt a cat. I didn’t know that my mom and dad disliked cats so one day, when I was in school, my white cat disappeared.
Over the years, I always wanted a dog that loved me. Instead, we had turtles and birds, chameleons and tropical fish. One Christmas my Uncle Lloyd thought it would be hysterical to give me a pair of hamsters as my gift. I thought I would love them, but they simply reproduced too fast for me to keep up.
Finally, in my late 30’s I became a first-time mom. When our son was a year old, we decided it was time for him to have a dog. (and possibly it would love me best of all) We researched and watched and asked people what kind of dog we should get. It was about this time we discovered our son had serious allergies. The Doc advised us that getting a dog wasn’t the best idea, so we began the quest for a sweet, lovable, smart, loyal and hypoallergenic dog.
Totally by accident, on a family outing, we met our first Bouvier des flandres. We loved her from the start. Her owners said she was great with kids, easy to train and music to our ears “had fur and dander that didn’t trigger allergies”. Had we found our breed? Yes!!
The next morning, we went to the library, pulled out the AKC book, and there we found the write up on the Bouvier. Everything we had heard was in the article. The picture showed a baby laying on the dog’s side and the d.og was chilling out. We were hooked.
Several months later, after an exhaustive search, and many disappointments, we found our first Bouvier. She was everything we had hoped for and more. Now, over thirty years later, we have just brought home our fourth Bouvier. She is feisty, full of mischief, smart and great fun. She keeps us young and on our toes.
Our “baby” boy is almost 30 years old. He has grown up with these wonderful dogs and they have adored him. Best of all, I’m happy to report, our furry Bouviers have loved me best of all (or at least as much as the rest of the family).
#sidetrackedsisters #sidetrackedjudy #family #furryfamily #pets #soul
Our first dog, Tippy disappeared one day. Lloyd said he ran away. Years later at Thanksgiving, Lloyd, feeling put out about something, announced that Tippy had not run away but he had taken him to the vet to be put down. Geez, no wonder we have issues!
Ouch…That was a tough one.