Meet Penny

I have mentioned our dog, Penny, before, mostly in my jogging posts, but I feel the time has come to formally introduce her. Also, it gives me an excuse to use some of the picture's I've collected of her.

Penny is a terrier/chihuahua/who-knows mutt, who, we think, is about 2 years old. We rescued her from a local humane society, who in turn had rescued her from the street. She jumped out at us among all the other dogs at the shelter because she wasn't barking, and she wasn't really jumping at her crate either. She was just looking at us. Also, she was small. The first dog we took out was a year old untrained lab, and it took the two of us to control him. This dog, who they had labeled "Chiquita" I could control no matter how much she wanted to chase a squirrel. We got her the next day, which gave us a chance to buy appropriately sized dog things.

This is what she looked like the day we got her:

She was a skinny little thing. She weighed about 13 lbs in this photo, and at this point the vet said she needed to gain about 20% to be healthy. According to the shelter records, she weighed 11 lbs when they took her in. I can't even imagine how wasted she must have been. 

This is her today:

My darling husband helped me get her to pose properly 

She's now about 17 lbs of muscle and energy. It took a long time to get her to fully trust us, and for us to really see her personality. She started out very timid, afraid of everything, and so weak she couldn't even hold her rope toy. Now we have to try to protect her from her own curiosity, and she'll rip the rope right out of your hand if you aren't careful. 

Penny is my first dog. I grew up with cats, which are wonderful pets, but are not dogs. So its totally possible that all dogs are like this. But I am delighted and amazed at how cuddly she is, and how much she seems to want to be near us, whenever we are home. If we are watching tv, she'll play tug-o-war, sleep on her mat, or chew her rawhides at our feet, unless its cold, in which case she will curl up as close to you as she can. 

I mean, find the six inches of space between you and the sofa arm, curl up next to you.

If I am cooking, she'll observe from a comfortable spot where she can spring into action as official kitchen spill cleaner-upper. If I am doing research or homework, she'll quietly sleep under my desk or in her soft crate. If I get up to move, she'll follow. 

More over, she is a clown. And I will swear she does it on purpose. She will chase her tail and do little floor gymnastics if she thinks you are stressed, or sad, or not paying enough attention to her when she wants to play. Sadly, I have never successfully captured this behavior. 

I realize that the internet is full of pets. But playing around with my dog and making food are about the two lightest things I do with my life, and I can already feel this blog tending to the serious. But I want to post about happy things too, and I can post pictures of my dog, knowing she can never protest.

~PhysicsGal