Portuguese Water Dog Number Two

[Dan]

No, not that number two.

Laying down to the left of me is Milky Way, a bouncing 3.5 year old male curly white/black parti Portuguese Water Dog. He joins Bailey, a 2.5 year old curly white/black parti Portie in the Tasman household

The story behind him -- apparently, his former owners in Boca Raton used an electronic fence to keep him on the property. One day, a jogger went by, and Milky apparently ran after the jogger, biting her in the butt. There were no witnesses, no skin was broken, and Porties have notoriously "soft mouths," but the jogger sued Milky's owner -- they settled for $10,000. The woman who rescued her tried to recreate the situation, and couldn't do it. When I first came to the rescue coordinator's door with Bailey, I got a little "woof" from Milky; when I was inside, I was greeted with a shaking Portie butt, a toy, and some kisses. Lots of kisses -- Bailey is a very slow and deliberate kiss, thinking out every lick, while Milky will wash your face. The rescue coordinator claims that she never saw a hostile bone in his body, and I'm inclined to agree -- a nine week old Jack Russell Terrier puppy was bossing him around!

Milky and Bailey both slept in the back seat on the three hour drive back to Orlando on Sunday. When we got back, Milky seemed apprehensive at first. I didn't think he knows what his situation is - it'll probably be a few days before he feels completely comfortable. They really like each other a lot; they play a lot, cuddle, and generally have fun -- no snaps, no fights. (Bailey, being a typical woman, extablished dominance early on.) The thing is ... how to divide my attention between two dogs?

[kms]

Dan, once those dogs get comfortable with each other, I think you'll be trying to get attention from them! You did a good thing adopting MIlky Way.

[PlannerGirl]

As a fellow proud puppy parent i had 3 dogs for a while and my god they kept each other busy. Now i just have the 2 boys and some times they get jelous but they are the best of buds. and they are the center of my little world

Plannergirl and her furry posse

[PlannerGirl]

these are my babies *proud mommy face*

[peter lowitt]

Woof

[Dan]

Awwww ... look at those doggies ...

Bailey in front of the Cyburbia World Headquarters and Robust E-Planning Solutions Centre (tm). The photo was taken a few days ago. (No pictures of Milky Way yet ... sorry)

Sweet widdle wub wub Portie doggie wub wub wub ...

[PlannerGirl]

how cute! One of my dogs, Oreo loves other black and white dogs for some reason, his last "girlfriend" was a dalmation named Oreo too. would that be oreos with double stuff

lol sorry had to go there
D

we want pics of the new "baby"

[Downtown]

I had Parker (chow/golden X) for a year before we got Jesse (dobie/black lab X), and Parker HATED Jesse at first - very snappish, tired herself out from constantly turning her back to Jess. After a week, she settled in, and now they are the best of sisters. However, I find that having two dogs is rather like having two kids - they get into all sorts of trouble when you're not around that they wouldn't think of all by themselves. So congratulations, dan. Thank goodness they didn't have to put Milky down. I'm sure he'll settle in quickly. Keep us posted!

[Norris]

I keep a Staffordshire Bull Terrier who's as good as gold. His mum came to stay for a fortnight and she taught him no end of naughty tricks. Keeping two dogs is four times the work of feeding one. Good luck!

[Dan]

Week two with the new doggie ...

I decided to rename "Milky Way" to "Guinness." Kinda' yuppie-ish, I know, but the name is two syllables, sounds much different than "Bailey," doesn't sound like a command, and doesn't elicit strange looks at the dog park.

Bailey (the female) and Guinness (the male) really have bonded well. They're both sitting in the chair I have in the front living room window, looking outside at the rain. (I've got the AC on, but I keep the window open sometimes so they can smell outside.)

They both get the "crazies" at about 1:00 AM, spontaneously deciding to wrestle and chase each other around the house. It gets very interesting when they rin into the dining room, which has two entrances to the great room. Guinness will be in the dining room, while Bailey stands outside, ready to "attack" from whatever exit Guinness might take. If he runs back in, Bailey bounces right towards the other exit, to make sure he's "trapped."

They also conspire to wake me up as early as possible. I tend to be nocturnal, and I have a very difficult time waking up in the morning. I'm usually late for work, but being the boss, it's no big deal; I usually put in about 50 hours a week. The dogs, though, insist that I wake up at 7:00, with both of them jumping on my bed and "attacking" me with kisses. Hiding under the sheets doesn't help, either; they claw through.

Bailey apparently has established dominance; there's no more humping. No fighting or growls, though.

The intelligence of these dogs is amazing.

[Dan]

By popular demand, I introduce Guinness.

That red spot on his right front leg -- he hit it somehow when we were last at the dog park. Porties have hair, not fur; white hair is much finer than black, so blood stains remain for quite a while.

[Dan]

Guinness again. Big boy - 60 pounds of goofy Portuguese Water Dog. I should put these in the Gallery, but I'll create a personal album later.

[Dan]

Bailey and Guinness at play. They really love each other.

[Dan]

Bailey's getting jealous, so I think I'll post a picture of her when she was 12 weeks old, on the drive home from the breeder. This was before she was named Bailey --she was "Del Sur's Ceedra," but that changed too.