Thoroughly Darlin' Millie

Tuesday, September 21, 2021

Thoroughly Darlin' Millie

Preppy Empty Nester September 21, 2021

Hello, dear friends. I know that most of you have heard that we have a sweet new addition to our family, Millie. I wanted to take the time to tell you her story as well as answer some questions of the canine variety that you have asked.

At the beginning of the Summer, I noticed that one side of Chili's tummy looked swollen and she seemed to be in some pain. After blood work and many tests, my Vet called me early on a sunny Saturday morning to tell me that my sweet little diva had liver disease and there was not a lot that they could do for her.

I knew that bad news was coming our way and yet I couldn't believe it. The Mister and I talked about it and we decided that we would say goodbye to our girl on Monday. We didn't want her to go through any more pain.

Over the rest of the weekend, every time that I looked at Chili's sweet little face and into her trusting eyes, I lost it. I spent all of the weekend snuggling with her and feeding her plenty of chickies, her favorite thing in the whole world.

Needless to say, I never wanted Monday to arrive. The Mister insisted on taking her. I was such a mess, I couldn't go. I kissed her on the head and thanked her for being so sweet to her Mommy. I also asked her to pick out our next pup for us. There is no question in my mind that she did.

Many readers have written to me regarding Chowdah's whereabouts. Last Spring, during the Pandemic, our number #2 came home to Massachusetts to spend a few weeks. During that time, I realized how lonely and isolated she felt. Her whole family was out of state and she wasn't dating anyone seriously at the time. Our #2 asked if she could take Chowdah to Texas to live with her temporarily. I said yes and the rest is history.

By the time we moved back to Texas, my girl and Chowdah were as thick as thieves. Her apartment complex is filled with young people who adopted dogs during the pandemic. Every evening the dogs and owners gather in a big field attached to the complex so the dogs can play and the owners can socialize. It is an ideal situation on all fronts.

We get to see Chowdah and our #2 frequently, and Millie is quite smitten with Chowdah.

...which leads me to the story of Millie.

The Mister and I began a search for our new family member. We are both dog people and there were very few days in our 31 years of marriage that we did not have a dog under our feet.

At the time we were looking, distemper broke out in the shelters and North Texas halted all adoptions. So our next step was to research breeders. We came across NAR Breeders in Arkansas and perused the adoptable pups.

And as the song goes...

Then I saw her face...

"Millie"

I got in touch with Abby, the breeder, who could not have been more helpful. She answered all of my questions promptly. Abby informed me that Millie was a real sweetheart and was on the shy side.

When you are a senior citizen and crazy enough to adopt a puppy, the word shy is music to one's ears.

Abby was so organized and sent me Millie's papers as well as putting us in touch with a transport company.

On a humid Sunday night in July, our little Millie arrived. All eleven pounds of her. I couldn't believe how calm she seemed. Right away, she warmed up to us. We weren't sure that we were going to keep the name Millie. We had a list of options. After we met her though, we agreed that Millie was the perfect fit.

She slept in a crate in our room. We have a door that goes straight out to the patio. As many of you know, time is of the essence when potty training.