A Streetcar Named "You Must Have Lost Your Minds"

After Lucy's passing, it was hard to get excited about getting another dog. She was so special she could never be replaced.  So, to take a stab at it, we got TWO.

Jane had begun looking at Dachsie rescue sites at the end of the year, but a pup would show up and immediately be claimed by someone who had been on the list longer. Very frustrating.  Finally, we got word that a cute red fellow was available who needed a home because his owners (sorry, PETA, that is the reality of it) found him troublesome. He was, allegedly, a cat chaser.  Not a cat harmer, but a chaser.  We thought we could give it a try, Bella being too old and slow to give him much of a chase.  However, the Rescue Mama (Tia with Dachshunds Seeking Forever Homes) was concerned about that, so she volunteered to bring along to the Meet and Greet another cute 7 year old who had just become available, and we could choose either. Or both.  (I think you can see where this is going....)

Indy was a red dapple (the cat chaser) who was very traditional looking, body-wise and otherwise. I had never seen a dapple Dachsie of any color, but he was 100% the dog we expected.  His former owner moved in with a boyfriend and Indy was unwanted--the guy had cats, which should have been a red flag right there.  He seemed friendly enough and rushed over to us and commenced licking any exposed part we put near him. So excited.

Bella was a gray dapple, even more un-Dachshund like from my experience, who was just as friendly, but a tad more reserved. She was polite and waiting her turn for attention (which, we found out, was more of an act, given her queen of the house demeanor now).  We had discussed whether we would take both on the drive to the meet, and no firm plan was conceived, more of a let's wait and see.  They say that any plan for any fight doesn't survive the first punch in the face... and the pups smacked us in the kisser hard.  And here's why.

So we took them both. 

Having a family member already named Bella made a name change obligatory.  We wanted something similar enough so the poor thing wouldn't be too confused and could adapt, so "Stella" seemed like a natural.  Indiana Jones (Indy) did not appeal to us that much, so I tried shifting that to Andy...pretty close, I thought...but we had trouble with that too.  It didn't seem to fit him that well.  It didn't take more than a few days of Andy to morph it into (what else?) Stanley, which not only has stuck, but also seems to fit his personality better.  He is a bit submissive yet, and has a slight fear of hands, leading me to believe he was mistreated by Cat-boy. But he parades and dashes ahead on our walks like he owns the neighborhood. He does whine when he is excited or when Jane goes out...he seems to be a real Momma's boy.  He also has the same tendency as Lucy had to have bad dreams, resulting in whimpers and body jerks. Probably dreaming of giant Siamese cats!

Stella is much closer to Lucy in temperament, but doesn't have the same personality.  She is indeed a doll, but is more of a diva.  She does not seem to like walks as much as either Lucy did or Stanley does, and waddles most of the way.  With her white face, gray body, and rocking gate (and funny tail) it often looks like I am walking my pet possum.  She roughhouses with Stanley--one good thing about getting two of them--and they alternate being the winner.  While Stanley is a whiner, Stella is more vocal. In addition to a rather strange groan-like sound she makes occasionally that defies naming, she barks for attention. We have to work on that.  She also barks at anyone outside, on the street, on bikes, and especially at dogs.  Ah, the joy of middle aged pooches.

The other thing they do that is hysterical is burrowing.  I suppose Dachsies are bred to dig and burrow, but they will both worm their way under blankets, covers, throws, sheets, anyplace they can hide.  Means that plopping down on the sofa requires a quick check to make sure there isn't one under the throw.

I can't say the burden is as great, but the way we did it is similar to going to the hospital for a baby and coming home with twins. Two of everything and it often takes both of us to wrangle them, especially for walks.  But they are worth it all.

More evidence of their supernatural cuteness:

Notice that they sleep a lot. Or maybe that's the only time we can get a shot of them not running around.