I remember the day. It was almost three months after the passing of Casanova/Puppy that I literally could no longer tolerate not having a dog. I had thought about another dog for some weeks prior to that day, but felt too guilty about bringing a new one into the house.

Casanova/Puppy (2010-2024)

I sort advice from others who had lost their dogs and each one said that the only solution to rid oneself of the constant ache and feeling of emptiness was to open the doors of both home and heart and allow another dog to enter.

Empty Bowls

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I thought about this advice for a while and as I did, I had to also think about what kind of dog I would like. The choice had to be made with care since I was no longer a young or even a middle aged person. In fact, I think in all honesty, I can be classified as being officially old! Therefore I was no longer able to cope with the antics and needs of a puppy (although I would have dearly loved one!) since they are full of energy, which sadly, I no longer am.

Theme from the film, The Searchers (1956) – Ride Away – written by Stan Jones (1914-1963)
and sung by The Sons of The Pioneers

The poor dog that would be right for me needed to be less active, house trained and small. Lifting a dog the size of Casanova/Puppy would prove difficult for me now. Having to put these restraints on my choice also brought more feelings of guilt! I was being very picky and so many poor deserving dogs would be rejected for no other reason than they were young or very active.

Anyway about three months later after the most miserable day of my life, I remember getting up – actually I jumped up out of bed – and made my way with some haste to the computer and searched out Dog Rescue Organisations and Shelters!

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There were so many dogs that I would have loved to offer a home, but I knew that I needed to be practical. Of course, I wished that I was still active and lived in an enormous house with grounds to match so that I could offer a huge number of animals a home.

I telephoned several Rescues and was told all sort of things about the dogs that I liked. However, what I had no realised was that the Rescue wanted to know about me too! It seems Rescues take the matching of man and dog very seriously. One can not just point to a dog and be given it. One has to fit the needs of the dog and the dog has to fit the needs of the man. When you think about it, this approach makes great sense.

Fitting Mutual Needs

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The first little dog that I liked had the highly amusing name of SLICK RICK!!!!!! He was a delightful little fellow!

SLICK RICK

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I felt certain that he and I would have fitted the needs of each other! But sad for me (and I believe for him), since I no longer travel long distances, and SLICK RICK lived at The A Purposeful Rescue Team in California, there was no way I could visit him and then have the Rescue come to my home to visit me. As a result, I had to give up the idea of adopting him. I was very upset about this since I had taken to him.

Westward Ho The Wagons

Al Jolson (1886-1950) – California Here I Come (1924)
written by  Bud DeSylva (1895-1950), Joseph Meyer (1894-1987) & Al Jolson

To be honest, if I still drove, I would have been California bound without delay! When I thought about SLICK RICK my imagination ran away with me and I thought of the tales that I could write about him! I could just imagine him riding down the freeway in a Hot Rod and wearing shades!

The Beach Boys – I Get Around (1964) written by  Brian Wilson (1942) & Mike Love (1941)

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RIGHT CLICK on the name below and copy the link address AND paste it in a new tab
to watch a short video of

SLICK RICK

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The Coasters – Searchin’ (1957) written by Jerry_Leiber (1933-2011)_&_Mike_Stoller (1933)

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I telephoned a number of Rescue Agencies and eventually contacted Chihuahua Rescue & Transport here in North Carolina. At this website were a number of wonderful dogs all deserving a home. It was hard to refuse so many of them, but after a weekend of pain & suffering, I decided to try to adopt one little dog in particular named Duchess!

A Short Video of Duchess proving that she is indeed already a star!

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I learned that Duchess was born on June 13th, 2011 (or thereabouts). She lived with an older lady and three other dogs. Sadly, the lady fell on hard times, resulting in the loss of her home. They all moved into a Hotel for the Homeless. Once the authorities learned that the lady was living at the Hotel with four dogs, she was informed that she could only continue to live there with two dogs. This meant that she had to give up two of her companions. One of the two dogs that she chose to part with was Duchess. She made this choice based on the fact that Duchess needed a certain amount of dental work which the lady could not afford to have done. She also had a Cataract in her left eye, which I learned did not impede her vision. As a result, Duchess was given up to Chihuahua Rescue & Transport where she received the care that she needed.

Poor Duchess’s teeth were apparently in a very bad condition and required extraction. During the process, her lower jaw was broken and required the wiring of the broken bones together for a period of time. Apparently, it is a feature of dogs who no longer have teeth, for their tongue to protrude from the mouth; Duchess’ tongue protrudes to the left.

Duchess at the Vet

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Once I expressed a serious interest in Duchess, her foster mother sent me some photographs of her and she looked to be a lovely little lady.

An Introduction to Duchess

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I was still feeling somewhat guilty about THINKING of having another dog come to live with me so soon after the passing of Casanova/Puppy. And then something interesting happened, which completely wipe away all feelings of guilt.

Early one morning, a day or two after receiving the photographs and video of Duchess, I was still in bed and was somewhere between being awake and being asleep – in a state of dozing! I remember suddenly seeing Casanova/Puppy and he was sitting on his hind quarters and looking down at Duchess who was dancing around him.

I mentioned this dream to a friend who became excited and said that Casanova/Puppy was happy that Duchess would come and live with me. Whether this is true or not, I like to think that it is.

When I got up, I completed the paperwork to request formal adoption of Duchess and emailed them to Chihuahua Rescue & Transport.

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