I love our animals… and this is just one of the reasons why…
To preface this story you need to know our sleeping arrangement at night: Deucey sleeps at the foot of the bed. He’s our protector at night — if he hears a peep the barking begins. And, trust me, there have been many nights where that barking annoys us (especially when we have company staying the night and he’s barking at every little new sound he hears), but that’s his role, that’s how he feels important. We like to call him our little “tattle tail” – he’s the one that will run out in the yard with Daisy when they see a squirrel and then coming running back instantly to tell us all about it while Daisy is still out in the yard barking at the tree. Speaking of Daisy, she is our cuddle bug — she has to be touching one of us — she’s usually curled up next to one of us, in the bend of our knee or she’ll share my pillow with me (which usually means she gets the whole pillow and I’m sleeping on the edge of the pillow). I think she’s such a cuddle bug because when she had to share her previous owner with 22 other dogs (see “Our Animals” page if you want to read the full story) she probably didn’t get that much one on one attention.
This morning I had just woken up, hadn’t even moved yet, just laying in bed enjoying the calmness before the hectic day begins and Daisy looked up at me and put her little wet nose under my hand and my heart just melted. How did she know I was awake? All I did was open my eyes — but it’s this incredible attention that our dogs give us that make me love them so much. I laid there and softly pet her head as she slowly stretched and rolled over pleading for a belly rub… she looked up at me with those puppy dog eyes and I couldn’t help but give in. She loves belly rubs.
Deucey then noticed that Daisy was getting some attention and he stretches, stands up and slowly walks over to my side of the bed like an old man and put’s his little front paws on my tummy and stretches again (yawning at the same time). I can’t help but give in to him too, I love it when he yawns and stretches at the same time… he makes this cute little noise and it just makes me smile.
Kiki and Pookie stay in the laundry room at night time during the winter because it’s too cold outside for them… the other morning I went into the room and both of them were cuddled up together in the same bed (they have 2 but I guess they wanted to sleep next to each other). I gave them a few scratches under the chin and soon I had 2 kitties just purring away. Nothing beats the soft, gentle purr of a cat - it tells you that she completely trusts you, loves you and needs you. Cats and dogs are very different but whether it’s purring hearts or wagging tails, both of them are able to show affection in their own special way.
I have had many animals in my life, in fact I can’t remember a time that I didn’t have a pet — we’ve had many cats, a few very special dogs that I will love forever, a couple of hamsters, many fish and a bird that lived for 10 years. Gary and I know that our furbabies will not live as long as us… that’s just the way God made them…. and we know that one day we will be really heartbroken when it is their time to go to Furbaby Heaven… but we would rather enjoy the millions of laughs, the grand greeting full of barks and wagging tails that we get everyday when we come home, the few messes that we have to clean up and the unconditional love that we get from our furbabies than live without them.
So I laid there this morning for an extra 10 minutes longer than I should have just loving the attention from our fur babies.
Pictures of some of my families furbabies through the years:
Ofcourse there’s Deucey
And Daisy
The “girls” – Pookie (black) and Kiki (gray/white)
My Mom with Dusty (RIP) and Little Bit (13 years old now)
Deucey reminds me alot of Dusty.
Pretty bird (RIP) — She lived 10 years! She never learned how to talk but she sure could whistle 
My Dad with his dog, Buddy
My brother with his dog, Riddick
My Mom with 4 of her 5 basset hounds
Yes, she has 5 basset hounds — and they are the most affectionate group of basset hounds you will ever meet.
Their names are: Waldo, Madeline, Heartley, Hercules and Prissy (not all pictured here) – One day I hope to get a good group photo of the lot of them but it seems so hard when all they want to do is have a belly rub instead of getting their picture taken.
She has a HUGE backyard so they have plenty of room to run and play!
They run out into the yard in a single file line to chase a squirrel. All you see are 5 white-tipped tails running as fast as they can to get to the tree first
– it is the funniest thing you will ever see
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Thanks for the nice story of all the fur babies! I loved Dusty so much, Pretty Bird and all her near escapes, they were like my children. I am so loved by my basset’s and Little Bit is always in my lap, Deucey loves his Grandmother, and Daisy will come around! Thanks for the tribute to pets who have given so much love in my life during hard times, they were by my side, silent, constant companions. As I try to write this, a storm is brewing and I have three of the six, so nervous, they are in a panic mod from the thunder. So, we are here for each other!
Love,
MOM
Thanks for the nice story of all the fur babies! I loved Dusty so much, Pretty Bird and all her near escapes, they were like my children. I am so loved by my basset’s and Little Bit is always in my lap, Deucey loves his Grandmother, and Daisy will come around! Thanks for the tribute to pets who have given so much love in my life during hard times, they were by my side, silent, constant companions. As I try to write this, a storm is brewing and I have three of the six, so nervous, they are in a panic mod from the thunder. So, we are here for each other!
Love,
MOM