Okay, so yes, I did bring home a little yarn from Georgia.
But in fact, I showed great restraint in that department. We passed a yarn store on Black Friday, on our way to visit Jonny’s sister. Jonny, going for husband of the year, suggested that I run in for five minutes, just to check it out. All the yarn in the store was 25% off. There was an entire rack of Madelinetosh, the most I’d ever seen in real life. But, I was really only looking for a couple specific colors for projects that family members had requested, and I didn’t see them. I walked away with nothing. It’s a slightly painful memory (25% off!!!!!)
I felt better the next day, when we stopped at Revival Yarns in Athens and I picked up a couple skeins (the greens I was looking for) at 20% off.
We did NOT bring home a baby. Sorry!
In fact, we brought home a middle-aged mutt named Weasel. We can get excited about that, can’t we?
Until about four years ago, we were always a two-dog family. And while we’ve talked about getting another dog for some time, it’s not like we were hurting for more responsibility. Another dog definitely wasn’t high on the priority list, though I have been wanting a little furry animal to curl up next to me while I knit, preferably one that doesn’t like to play with yarn.
After the little rat episode, Jonny did a Google search for “dogs that kill rats” which turned up a top ten list of canine rat killers. As you might expect, Trudy was not on the list. Number one was the obvious rat terrier, and others included Jack Russells and Dachshunds. We started searching Petfinder.com and I actually spoke to a dog rescuer about a little jack russell puppy. She didn’t think it was the right dog for us though (“You have how many kids?”) and suggested that the easiest dog for Trudy to adjust to would be an adult male. Trudy hasn’t ever really seemed to like other dogs. She has never been aggressive towards them, just uninterested and a little unsure of herself around them.
I got busy preparing for our trip though, and stopped thinking about another dog.
The day we visited Jonny’s parents we met Weasel, a stray that showed up a couple years ago. They were caring for him, but weren’t attached. He was living as an outside dog and they mentioned that he had recently killed a rat and left it on the porch. My ears pricked up at that…
“Did you say he kills rats?”
That had to be a sign, right? More importantly, he was such a friendly little thing and seemed to love all the attention from the kids. Trudy seemed to like him as well.
Jonny and I started talking about it. I didn’t want to be impulsive, and it felt a little nuts to bring this older, outdoor dog home with us, entering into the relationship with a very long car ride.
But, Jonny’s parents thought that Weasel (their name for him, the kids don’t want to change it) would probably really like living with us. He’d get more attention and get to live indoors. So we decided to take him home with us. He loved the van ride, alternately snoozing on the piles of pillows and blankets and looking out the windows.
He’s mostly doing great. Trudy really likes him and we see a positive change in her. She seems to be more relaxed now.
Weasel, being a little old man, is a little ornery at night. He definitely has some quirks. But, he seems quite pleased to be here, and was obviously already familiar with curling up on furniture. Overall, he’s really a sweet little dog.
We’re working on house training. I’ll say this, he’s doing better than a puppy would, and thank goodness we don’t have any carpet in the house.
p.s. Jonny’s version of this story is much shorter than mine. “We got a dog named Woozle. He pees on the floor, but we love him.”
p.p.s. What breeds do you think he is? I think definitely some Dachshund. What else?
p.p.p.s. There were no signs of rat invasion when we returned from our trip. Maybe that rat really was a bachelor.
my yelling. (btw MLM I’m still green with envy!) and on November 25th, 2010 Thanksgiving moninrg Some Blogging Guy mused (#6) about why he was thankful for Rick and his South Florida Daily Blog. I certainly cannot
Weasel is such a great name for him! We’ve also had some issues with rats recently. A few years ago a hurricane knocked them all out of the trees (they are arboreal rats) and they decided our attic was a fine place to move. Releasing a rat snake under the house seemed to really help, but I’m afraid it’s like Will Cuppy said, it’s impossible to have just one rat.
Love reading your posts. Each one is a well-told story, that completely draws me in. Welcome, Weasel! 🙂
I thought you might be amused by my idiocy. I need new reading glasses I guess. I read “yarn” as “yam” I was wondering about buying yams in different colors and the possibility of Georgia having yam stores before it occurred to me.
I’m amused only because that sounds like something I would do/think. 🙂
Jonny’s version of the story made me laugh 🙂
It’s cute to see the dogs interact like this. Enjoy your Wednesday!
Great post! I hope you´ll all have a lot of fun and good life together!
Ohhhhh I am just tickled pink! He is such a sweetie pie. Your pictures are so beautiful as usual. Just look at all the love you guys are giving him!! That is what every dog needs. My favorite pic is the one where he is listening to a story. Oh my gosh so cute. I am looking forward to many more pics and tales!
Oh, Ginny, he’s a sweetie! What great folks you & your family are to welcome this ornery old guy into your family. He looks like he’s always been there! xx
Weasel looks at home with the family already. Congratulations on a sweet little fella.
I am thinking some corgi? He looks a lovely old man, we want to rescue another sometime this year x
I was thinking there’s something very corgi-like about him also.
Dear Ginny , I read your blog everytime here in Germany, and i`m often inspired and i like your way to write and tell about your life and your family. But now i have a question: How many stitches did you cast on with your claret cowl? I bought the same yarn last days ( You see i am very very inspired…) and my one seems to be smaller than yours. I took a number of 88 stitches. And it is so very close to my neck. Especially your yellow one looks loose than mine is. Please answer soon, i am so inspired and I will go on knitting as soon as I can. Thanks for your great inspirations.
P.S. Weasel is very cute and I wonder how you manage all the childs and the dogs.. ..Great!!
A lots of greetings from Germany , Ramona
Hi Ramona! I cast on 99 stitches for the green cowl. I believe with the yellow I only cast on the 88, but that yarn stretched out a lot after I finished the cowl.
dachshund for the coloring. We have a Jack,and he definitely looks to have some in him. jacks are much bigger than Rat terrier, and have similar head shapes to your weasel. corgi could be in there too, for his bulk/build.
Looks like he might have some shepherd in him, and maybe some hound. He’s a funny, quirky looking cute little fella. He really does look kind of like a weasel!
Oh Weasel is WONDERFUL! What a lovely addition to your family!
And I got to treat myself to 16 skeins of yarn! It’s my xmas pressie and I’m going to make a Lucy (Attic24) afghan!
Well done to you for showing restraint (at 25% off!) I’m pretty sure I would have caved in and bought some yarn!
PS… really enjoying our dish cloths! Thank you so much1
1. super cute dog.
2. I really admire your restraint in walking away from yarn. I need to meet that thing called restraint in a yarn or fabric or book store.
3. johnny’s version is great but your story makes me hang on the edge of my seat.
SO happy for you and WEASEL, looks like a match made in heaven 🙂
Weasel looks to be a mix of Dachshund and Jack Russell Terrier. I have a Chihuahua and Jack Russell Terrier mix named Radar because of his big ears – he hears everything! Good luck with Weasel, he seems to be qutie contented with the family.
Weasel looks amazingly sweet. We have a stray, and she has her quirks but has been such a great dog. It’s like she knows her life is so much better than before. Enjoy her. Nice story!
That had been my guess!
Our prissy little miniature dachshund is a great ratter (we have chickens and live in an urban area) — so I think Weasel will be happy to help you in that department. Dachshunds are very family-oriented and they like nothing better than curling up beside their humans.
I’m thinking the ears are perhaps chihuahua.
Good luck!
Welcome to Weasel. I hope he is a mighty ratter. Our Jack Russell and our Jack Russell/Poodle mix just nailed a rat the other day. Go Ratters!!
I love him, he looks like a terrier of some sort and he has such an expressive face 🙂
He looks a lot like our dog, Jasper, who we think is a chihuahua/doxie mix, but Weasel looks a little bigger, I think (hard to tell). Maybe some rat terrier? When pressed, we call Jasper a Small Brown Dog. 🙂
I’m so happy about Weasel! He appears to be Dachshund and terrier (rat terrier, fox terrier or my best guess is Jack Russell)
That also adds up to a committed ratter. Remember that most ratters will also kill snakes birds squirrels chipmunks and cute little bunnies- at least my mini schnauzer will and has even taken out an opossum. Still you can’t fault them for it since it is their nature. I’d buy the dogs a bag (or case!) of Orijen brand dog treats which are the tastiest treats I’ve found and healthiest too, they are freeze dried whole meat in singles like lamb, wild boar, bison or there are blends also like Tundra and Regional. I have dogs at the local dog park that find me for a treat every time I’m there because this treat makes such a positive impression on dogs they remember me after the first treat. So I would train Weasel to get a reward for going potty outside and then for asking to go out also or get a dog door and reward that. If you don’t want a dog door, have you seen the bells on ribbon you hang on a door and then train them to ring the bell to go out? No doubt he can learn and has already endeared himself with everyone so hang in there. I know dachshunds are one of the hardest breeds to house break. One more thing- make sure you have Enzymes to remove all odors of his mistakes. Pet stores have them or Amazon.com and I like Bac-out for a brand. I hope you don’t mind all the advice, I’m so excited because I’m a dog person!
Thank you, Trista! We’ve not had a small dog before. We are definitely leash walking him because he loves chasing cats, and I suspect any other critter. Where do find the best price on the Orijen treats? I like the bell idea, I wonder if Silas and Job would leave it alone though. I think we’ll try.
I wish I had a better answer for where to get the best price on these treats- I’ve been looking through my email records but the only one I can find is doggiefood.com They do have many specials so perhaps that will work. Honestly I usually buy them locally instead of ordering but I have a lot of natural pet stores in my area. Orijen treats are pricey but so worth it, and they are very light in weight due to being freeze dried, so there are about 80 treats in a 3.5 oz bag. I hope that helps. Amazon.com is an option too.
I think the bell is really a great idea and it works for lots of dogs, maybe Weasel!
I ordered a package from Amazon, but wish it had occurred to me to check our local natural doggie store first! I’ll go there next time! Thank you!
I agree with Trista, lots of dachshund and a fair bit of terrier. I used to run a dog rescue and also keep dachshunds (and whippets). Dachshunds are tough to house train but use positive rewards and you’ll get there, of course as a stray he may have been trained before, making your job easier. They are also tough when it comes to teaching recall but I have some tried and true tips if that’s helpful, just let me know and I can email you. He looks like a really smart dog and his prey drive will be huge so good recall will be important. You are going to have so much fun with him!
I’m thinking there is definitely some chihuahua in the mix. We had a chihuahua on our farm in FL. His name was Taco. He was an outside dog and just awesome. Weasel looks sweet! Enjoy!
Weasel is one lucky little fellow to be in your home!!! He will get lots of love!
We had a Chihuahua that looked just like him once. I think he was also mixed with something else but they look identical.
I loved this post, Ginny! I think Weasel found the perfect home. He obviously loves kids!!! Which, in your case, is more than half the battle. Sorry I haven’t written in so long to keep you up to date on things happening in San Andreas. I’ve just been very, very busy and for me that says a lot. I don’t do busy well; I tend to get all confused and frustrated. Anyway, I love your posts; I read every single one. Love you so much… Marj
It looks like he found a great home!
His body looks like a puggle……his face like a German Shepherd
He’s adorable! I’m glad he’s a happy addition to the family!
Oh he looks so sweet! I bet he’ll be really happy with you guys 🙂
Awwww I was really rooting for baby #8!!!
I’ll keep rooting 🙂
Kim
He looks like a nice dog. He definitely has some dachshund, and it looks, by his body and action shots, like a little Jack Russell. His ears, though, I don’t know. There is something else in there. It could be a little Corgi (does he herd the kids?). A perfect Heinz 57!
Our Aussie — a medium to large dog — acts odd around other dogs, too. She acts timid, not quite submissive, but nervous. I’m not sure she knows she’s a pretty large dog.
I’m glad you came home with some yarn, too. 😉
LOVE Weasel’s eyes! I think Corgi is in there for sure. Maybe some German Shepherd (coloring and head shape). Looks like a lovely and loyal friend. Glad you found each other!
Glad you got a dog! Two is better than one. He is cute with those bat ears
He is really cute. Looks like a good family dog. I’m in Georgia and we had lots of doxies growing up. He looks like a dachshund/chihuahua mix, or dachshund/terrier mix. Either way, he’ll be a good watchdog and rat/snake killer. All of our doxies were huge cuddle bugs too. Glad Trudy likes him, and vice versa. 🙂
Looks a bit like a mountain feist to me.
Amazing that this outdoors dog would be so comfy on the ride home, but it’s working out perfectly! Good luck with him! 🙂
He had to have been someone’s pet that was either lost or dumped off at my in-laws. He seems familiar with riding in the car and very familiar with getting on the furniture. He even stands still for his bath!
Funny, Pooh Bear never mentioned the wild woozle’s toileting problems. Very nice looking dog.
He looks so sweet! I have a Dachshund and we love him so much! He is like another one of our children! 🙂 I am so glad you brought Weasel home and not a reptile!!!!! 😀
you tell such great life stories, I do so enjoy reading about your family! So many fun photos are like icing on the cake! blessings to you and yours
She looks like she had Corgi in her.
such cute pictures!!! I love Jonny’s version 😉 may this good looking dog have a happy life with you all! so great and that your other dog is more relaxed too! :))))
I mentioned on the last post that he looks just like our dog when I was growing up, and more pictures confirms it, same size and coloring. Our girl, Petunia, was known to be half German Shepherd (father) and half teeny tiny miniature dachshund (mother).
Ouch! That should be illegal.