Basset Selfies

I have to laugh at the recent craze with all these people who take "selfies", they stand in front of the mirror and just take a million pics of themselves. This does not interest me in the least, but what does interest me is obsessively taking pictures of LEO! I suppose I have no right to talk about these crazy people who take all these selfies because I am the crazy person who takes a million and one pictures of my dog! How on earth can I resist with a face like this?

It's a bit comical how much LEO hates the camera but now that all the new phones come equipped with cameras, I've hit the jackpot. As long as I keep the phone on silent and he can't hear the click of the picture being taken, he's pretty clueless. Although I have to be careful of sudden movements while holding the phone because at times he does seem to be able to put it together that I'm doing something sneaky. The other night at a family gathering, there were many people I hadn't seen in years. It was a little embarrassing when a few of them mentioned that they didn't know what my kids looked like but they sure knew LEO. They were telling everyone that I love to plaster photos of my dog all over my FB Page and, "Imagine, the dog even has his own blog?" Oh well, I still have no regrets! I owe my life to the new I phone because I couldn't even imagine my life without 962 million photos of LEO! JUST LOOK AT THAT FACE!!!

Spiteful little Basset!

This is the face of a fugitive! Golfers beware! It's amazing how spiteful Leo can be! After returning from a night away, he was so disgusted with me for leaving, he broke off the leash and ran away from me! It's not like he wasn't spoiled rotten while I was gone, but I guess it's just not the same! I wasn't even sure he could still run as fast as he did today but there's surely no doubt in my mind now! When he has a will, he will find a way. He wreaked havoc on the golf course and seemed to enjoy watching me make a total fool out of myself as I clumsily chased after him with a pound of salami in my hand screaming "Come back here you bad dog!!!"What was I doing with a pound of salami you might be asking? Well, I was desperate and I knew he was mad enough at me to not come back, so I ran back into my house and grabbed the first thing that I could find. He is usually a sucker for a slice of salami, but salami wasn't even cutting it today. The more I yelled the faster he ran! All I could hear was the angry screams from golfers as he ran through each hole! Finally one of them grabbed him and gave him back to me but not without a lecture to keep my damn dog off the golf course! As if I had a choice!!!!

The last old dog in the neighborhood....

I have a really hard time believing that LEO will be turning 9 years old in just two weeks.

Time has flown by so much since we got him from New England Basset Rescue, 8 years ago this Thanksgiving!  I can’t think of a more appropriate time to have gotten him because he has given me a million reasons to be thankful over the years! Despite the fact that it’s a lot of work to have a dog with special needs, it’s worth every minute of it because he gives it back to me tenfold in Basset Love!  

Yesterday, I ran into my neighbor who was outside playing with her brand new adorable Lhasa Apso puppy. As soon as I saw the new puppy, I figured out pretty quickly what that meant. I was afraid to ask but of course when I did, I found out that her beloved dog, Dunkin had passed away. She told me, she had to make the devastating decision to put him to sleep this past summer.  He was only 9 and he was the third dog in our neighborhood to pass away recently. I have a pit in my stomach as I write this because all three of these dogs were just 9. This is crushing. 9 is so young, even though it’s 67 in human years, it’s still young in my opinion. It's so unfair that dogs can't live as long as humans, isn't it?  I guess it wouldn’t matter much because even if Leo lived to be 100, it still wouldn’t be enough time for me!

My neighbor and I talked about all of the new puppies on the block and she brought it to my attention that out of all the old dogs in the neighborhood, LEO was the last dog still living. This broke my heart. It only served as a painful reminder that he is beginning to wind down now and approaching the last leg of his journey. I am optimistic by nature and I always tell my kids that he will far surpass the average life span of a Basset Hound which is 10-12 years old.  God knows, LEO of all Bassets is anything but average! If strength and longevity could be derived from love and love alone, he would surely live forever!

I have noticed so many changes in LEO as he nears his 9^th birthday. Some of the changes are good, and some are bad, but all point to the obvious fact that he is aging. We can now open up the front door and not panic that he will bolt. He no longer runs away. He can’t be bothered. He really puts off going up the stairs to bed as long as he can. It’s easy to see that the stairs are becoming a struggle for him. Last night he stopped half way up and rested. He has never done this before. He also doesn’t jump up into bed with me as fast as he used to. All I would have to do in the past is pat my hand on the bed, and he was there in a flash. Now, he waits until I coax him up two or three times and then he will jump. He’s doing a lot more moaning and groaning lately. He has always loved to nap, but it seems that he is napping more than ever now. He's really slowed down his game when it comes to harassing our cats. He actually gives them some personal space now! His precious face is almost all covered in white these days. Yet,he remains the most adorable Basset of all time and I actually love the white! He looks distinguished.

Thankfully, he still jumps up on the couch and cuddles with me every morning as I have my coffee.  He is still the first one to greet me with a big happy grin and a wagging tail when I walk in the door from work! Even though, I feel a bit sad that his 9^th birthday is approaching, I also feel blessed and grateful.  I have decided that his 9^th birthday is something to celebrate not  to mourn.  I vow to take a little extra time each day to appreciate all the sweet joy he brings to my life. Although he gets a million hugs and kisses from me on a daily basis, he will get even more. He will have more treats, more homemade dog food, extra walks, cuddles and lots of extra belly rubs. I have always appreciated what a gift he is, even in the most trying times, but for this last leg of his beautiful journey here with us, I am going to really make it as memorable and special as I can!