My brother was asthmatic when he was little, so we weren't allowed to have pets. However, I did have two goldfish named George and Fifi.
When my brother's asthma was no longer a problem, we got a puppy for Christmas (a cocker spaniel/poodle/ something mix) that we named Sugar Prum (A yuletide Hai-Karate commercial was running at the time). She was a great dog (and I'd love to have her now), but she didn't have much of a chance with six kids and two adults who had no idea what parenting was.
I had two newts (Cadeau and Delta).
When I met DRMusicGuy, he had a blonde Cocker Spaniel who was about a year old, and she became my world. Buffie lived a very comfortable 14 years.
We then got Wee Baby Doris-- a Basset Hound puppy who ruled everything. What a character! Stubborn, smart, funny. A few years later, and although I am a one-dog man, some friends (well, their dogs, actuallly) had a litter of black labs (and of course once you meet a puppy, there's no turning back). Since she came from a good Jewish family, Lyn named her Mazal. Both Doris and Mazal also lived to be 14. Mazal really came into her own once she was an only dog and the world revolved around her. What a sweetie.
After she went to dog bone heaven, I was determined to not get a pet for awhile despite how empty I felt. But I was the one who had to stay home while DRMusicGuy traveled. He loved the dogs, but I was definitely "the Mom." So, I thought I'd wait a year or two to give me the chance to do a few things I wanted. Mind you, anytime we traveled, I pleaded, paid, cajolled and did everything to get my mother or sister to actually move into my house so the dogs could just stay in their own routine and not have to be boarded.
I was working at a bakery for dogs when Mazal died, so I still had the chance to see dogs all the time. Despite my conviction to NOT get another dog for awhile, one day a friend showed up at the bakery with this beautiful Border Collie mix. I KNEW from the moment I saw her that it was love at first sight. However, I thought, this dog belonged to my friend, and that therefore I wa s safe. As it turns out, she was just taking the dog out for a play day. She was a stray that they were trying to find a home for. Once my friend said that, I knew that I was sunk. It didn't take much convincing. Sugar is a beautiful dog (and still is---as I got to spend some time with her on Sunday) and still gets lots of treats. She is probably the most well-adjusted dog I ever had (probably because I didn't raise her from a puppy!)
Everyone said that Sugar must have done something right to going from surviving on the streets for a month or two to going to live at a house with an acre of fenced yard and two devoted humans (one of which was the manager of a store that made dog treats). She got to try out every new treat, every new toy there was.
Buffie's job was to make sure we pampered her; Wee Baby Doris' job was to make sure I knew who was boss. Mazal's job was to be sweet and to make me play fetch (over and over again) everyday. Sugar's job (especially since she is a working/herding dog) is to see that I get properly walked everyday.
