Raising Baxter

For dog lovers out there

Now and then I’ve regretted adopting Baxter. (I’ll get into that later.) I already had a calm, quiet Lhasa Apso named Biskit, but he was a Mama’s dog and I wanted a dog for the kids. Baxter, a West Highland Terrier mix, couldn’t live with his owner anymore because she was marrying a man who was allergic to him. The day we brought him home, he bonded immediately to Faith. She cuddled and played with him, but when she went outside, he watched for her from the window. He bonded with Zach in a different way, often playing tug of war with a rope toy.

Baxter has his quirks. Like the time I saw him, through the glass patio door, trotting  back and forth, his mouth filled with a soft object. Back and forth. Back and forth. Is that a dead animal in his mouth, I wondered, getting up from my comfortable couch and exiting the house onto the patio. Maybe he actually killed a pigeon! He’s always barking at them, like they’re his nemesis. “Baxter, let me see that.” He dropped it at my feet and I gingerly picked it up.

 It was a stuffed animal, decayed�"if a stuffed animal can be decayed. It had no color and its glass eyes were sunk into its head. Clumps of dirt stuck to its fur. “Baxter, I’m going to have to throw this away.” He followed me into the kitchen and watched me open the door under the sink to the garbage. “What! You really are going to throw that toy away?” he telepathically asked in shock. “That’s a good toy!” Being the flexible Baxter that he is, he went and found his new purple ball and brought it to me to throw out the patio door for him over and over. Over time, though, the back yard became a graveyard for his many stuffed animals.

Baxter is brave. Like the time he ran out his doggie door into a storm. "Bark! Bark! Take that thunder, you noisy beast!" Running around on the patio, "Bark! Bark! Take that you renegade wind!"  Or the many times that he ran up barking and biting my vacuum as I cleaned the carpet.

It was his barking that was a problem. My next door neighbor in Boise came to my front door. He looked like an ex-marine. As I opened the door, I expected him to introduce himself to me, being as he was new to the neighborhood. “Your dog is driving me crazy! I’m in my back yard and I hear him barking! I’m in my house watching t.v. and I hear him barking!”

“I’ve been using a bark collar that emits a vapor when he barks,” I explained. “I’ll get a better one tomorrow.” I did. It helped a little. But soon, animal control was at my front door to discuss the problem.  In contrast, Biskit was quiet. The two dogs became great friends, often chasing each other up and down the hallway in glee. When Biskit’s time came, after a period of kidney failure, Baxter rested on the bed with us all when the vet came to ease Biskit  out of his suffering. It was a comfort to still have Baxter.

Baxter had other problems. He clawed at the window sill when people walked past. He clawed at the door when performing his butler duties. He clawed at the couch when his ball rolled under it. He marked his territory in the house. And he still barked. I worried about moving to Washington. Would he alienate more neighbors?  To my surprise, we were surrounded by dog lovers in our new neighborhood. No one has ever complained about his barking. Everyone greets him by name when we are out on our walks. We bought a new couch that stood higher from the floor so he doesn't claw at it when seeking his balls. Speaking of which, our floors are wood and easier to clean if he pees. We bought belly bands for times that we had to leave him home or times we take him with us to relative’s homes.

Baxter shows his love in many ways. There was the time I teared up watching a story on the PBS News Hour about a beautiful East Indian man, a doctor, who got lung cancer. Baxter ran over to me and gazed up at me to discern if I was OK. Then he jumped on my lap and kissed my hand. If I sneeze, he comes running to check on me too. When Faith rode a school bus in Boise that picked her up in front of our house, he would station himself on the back of the couch, to watch out the window, about thirty minutes before the bus was due to bring her back.  Then the bus would pull into view. He’d already be barking and running to the door because he could hear it before it came into view. As soon as I opened the door, he’d take  off like a streak of white lightning, hopping onto the bus where he would stop to be petted  by the bus driver before he escorted his girl into the house.

Baxter loves adventure. My boyfriend John took us to Cannon Beach. It might have been Baxter’s first time to see the ocean. He thought he’d died and gone to Heaven.

 

 

Baxter is eight years old now. I figure, if he lives to the age of my former dogs, we have another four years. I don’t regret adopting him anymore.

Reviews

[Suzanne Sonderleigh]

Baxter is quite the energetic little doggie! I can see everything you described. Running around, giving kisses, and burying and digging up toys. They drive us crazy but our life wouldn’t be the same without them. I know a person is warm and loving when I see their sweet and sometimes crazy dogs running around. Thank you for reminding me of life with dogs. 💖

[Shelley Warner]

Thank you for reading Suzanne. It is a real compliment to me that you could see what I described.

[Chris Shaw]

Such a lovely share Shelley. I love dogs. Your Baxter reminds me of ours. We sort of inherited Solo a blue staffie from my grandson. He moved out and was unable to take her. She has really bonded with me. Absolutely adores me and is very sensitive to my emotions. She too knows when I am sad. My grandson has moved back in, but all Solo's loving is reserved for me. Like Baxter she can be a pain, but people can also be a pain. Tolerance is needed. You know dogs can give so much pleasure, that you hardly notice their negatives. I laughed at the soft toy episode. Each soft toy given to Solo has been destroyed in next to no time. Rubber toys for her now or rope toys that she can shake. May you have lots more years with your endearing pet. Thank you for the morning smile.

Chris

[Shelley Warner]

Thank you Chris, I love hearing about Solo too. Yes, I believe that dogs teach us about tolerance and empathy and love.

[Chris Shaw]

I really enjoyed your story.

[Shelley Warner]

Thanks, Baxter has had a big day. Drove to my daughter's (45 min away). She is a wonderful shopper, so Baxter stayed at her house while she (the kids' aunt) went back to school shopping with us. Now Baxter is asleep on his soft orange fleece blanket at the foot of my bed.

[Chris Shaw]

Aw. I have the cat asleep on my bed now. She's called Myron. Solo is out in the garden already. Nearly 7.00am here. Hope you and Baxter sleep well :))

[Shelley Warner]

We did. After hours of shopping (I was too tired to do the lat store so my daughter did), we stayed for dinner and got home about 10 PM. The kids carried in our purchases, went straight to bed, and we all slept like crazy. I may have woken up only once, when I usually wake up 2 or 3 times and turn my audio book back on.

[Shelley Warner]

I bet Myron and Solo are good company.

[Chris Shaw]

They are good company as are my three grandkids stil with us and all their friends. I have a full house :)

[Shelley Warner]

Yes, you might have told me before that you are raising your grand kids. Sounds like you are doing well with that. Bless you.

[Samuel Dickens]

We do tend to put up with a lot regarding pets. I'll not get into my own difficult pets stories, but you may believe me when I say, "I know what you mean". Does anyone ever call him "Baxter-bear"? I've known of that to occur. It just seems natural. Here's wishing you tolerance, and Baxter a long life. Oh, that didn't come out right. Of course I wish you both long lives. He, 29, you, 142.

[Shelley Warner]

LOL, thanks for the long life wishes. No, we've never called him Baxter Bear. Thanks for reading.