My rescue dog, Cotton Puff

by Diana
(ontario, Canada)

I had been looking for a buddy for my Shi-bi Teddy Bear who gets a variety of other names like T.Thaddeus Dog, Theadore and Tiddley winks.He is a cross between A shitszu and Bishon Frise. Teddy was five years old when a friend told me about a dog who was terrorized by two other dogs and surrounded by a lot of dogs also. Cotton was her name at the time and I thought it needed something pretty attached to it so I called her Cotton-Puff. She was so very scared and didn't eat for three whole days. Finally I put a container of moist dog food (little ceasar's) under the table on the third night and she ate it. I was so relieved. Teddy sleeps in a dog cage. Teddy and I laid on our tummy's trying to befriend her and get her to let us gently pet her even. A few days later I got a cage for her too and that's when she relaxed a little. She still would sit with her face in the corner and stiffen like a board when ever you touched her. This went of for a couple of years. I would play using a toy with Teddy and then a different toy (for her) with her but she didn't understand how to play.

Another year later and she took to my husband but not me.And another year after that she has began following me around the house now. Early on we realized she likes to ride in the car with us. She now follows me or my husband out to the car off leash which Teddy cannot be trusted to do as he thinks its his duty to chase cats, a long story. We are often out in the car so in summer time if we need to, we leave them in the car with the air-conditioning on and the heater if it is winter time. But this is now scary as people may think we are abusing them which we are not. My son lives two hours away and doesn't drive so when we visit we put his big dogs in one bedroom and the cats in another so that my little dogs can be in the living room, while we go out for special occasions. His dogs are so big that play together with mine is not an option as one paw in play flattens my dog and I don't get to visit often enough. In the last year Cotton-Puff has started licking my hand if I stop petting her and she will now look at visitors when they talk to her. We still have a problem with her peeing in the house if I don't take her outside every two hours or if I go grocery shopping without her.My other dog Teddy-bear will bark at me to let him outside. She is starting to go to the door sometimes when she needs out but I have to put down pet pee pads in the house and her aim sometimes misses them.
We love her very much and our house is her for-ever-home.She is so gentle and loving. We got her when she was four years old and she is twelve years old this year. Teddy-bear will be thirteen in the fall.

They often remind me of a team of horses side by side.P.S. she does not like timbits so we stopped getting them for Teddy-bear, but do they ever love pasta! Two years ago they were both getting sick and the vet suggested we go to a special dog clinic where we were told they would need teeth removed, this is common in small dogs. They both get homemade food which they love! Such a joy to me. Also Cotton-puff is like a little princess because when lying on the couch she likes her head on a cushion (chuckle).