Dog of the Day

June 26, 2008

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Spanky, the Dog of the Day
Name: Spanky
Age: Eleven years old
Gender: Female Breed: Pug
Home: Shreveport, Louisiana, USA
 
   My Dog's name is Spanky. Her tongue never goes in her mouth and has not since she was about six months old. Because she is older now, it hangs out more because she has lost some teeth. This is common in pugs, we have found. If she sleeps on it, her tongue flattens out and increases in width about 50% and sticks to her chin and it looks like a pink stripe running down her face. It looks so silly! We have a little three year old girl and Spanky could not be more sweet with her. She seems to know that children are special, and tolerates her extremely well.

    I think she is the most beautiful dog in the whole world, but I acknowledge that beauty is in the eye of the beholder!!

    Spanky is a very mellow and loving dog. She is getting old now so she is not as frisky as she used to be, but as a puppy and young dog she was a skilled soccer player! She would try to defend against any moves I would make with the ball and would dribble the ball across the backyard if she got a hold of it by running and kicking it with her front paws. She would do this until she was snorting so loud from exhaling that she sounded like someone driving down the street with a flat tire! It was quite a sight and was generally referred to as Pug Ball. She loves her schedule � if my wife and I have not headed up to bed by about 10 pm, she goes ahead and sits by the door wanting her final bathroom break of the day in anticipation of going upstairs and getting a good night sleep.

    When I was in law school and she spent a lot of time alone, I made a couple of toys for her. I attached dog toys to the end of about 6 feet of twine which was attached to a little carabineer that I would attach to my belt loop. When I was at home, I would put that on and no matter if I was cooking, cleaning or anything else, she always had something to chase around as the toys just dragged around behind me wherever I went. She loved doing this.

    My daughter, who is now almost five, calls her "Stanky" which is not entirely a misnomer for a dog her age. While she loves my daughter, she has always been my dog and will go anywhere I go.

    This picture of her with the bows and bandana was taken after one of her visits to her favorite hairstylist. I had given her hairstylist, who was a bit of a free spirit, free reign to decorate Spanky. Spanky would come home with bows, bandanas and all kinds of painted toenails. With that tongue, she is a hit anywhere she goes, but especially after a fashion grooming appointment.

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