Rough Ruff

Hello all,

Eric and I have a new doggie in our family. Her name is Oreo and she is four years old. She is a long-haired Chihuahua and has black and white fur, except for her face which has some brown spots. Some pictures will be available at a later date.

She is a very sweet girl and knows an adorable trick. She can pray! She puts her paws together just like hands praying, with the pads of one paw touching the others. She loves being on her back and having her tummy rubbed. But she does not yet show that she is good at playing. Norris loves playing, or used to-we'll get to that. He loves to fetch, to go for walks, to be chased.

However, Oreo went into heat last weekend. This is has been quite an adventure. The couple we got Oreo from didn't know if she had been spayed or not since they had had a number of dogs in their care. We thought we'd wait and see. Short wait. Now, Norris is whining for some loving and we're doing our best to keep them apart.

They sleep in separate as well as spend the day in different rooms while we are gone. But even while they are sitting on our laps, Norris is trying to mount Oreo. Eric is okay with them having puppies. I am not ready for such a task. Though, I am becoming quite furious at the number of people who tell us not to do it. Eric's mom has been through many puppy births and Eric has also been around for them. We are both intelligent people and know that it's now always a smooth process, just like with people.

I took Oreo to the vet for a check up, just to see if she is a healthy girl. She is, but they nagged me about getting her spayed, and how she could get cancer or a uterine infection. Okay, we had only had her for a week, most of which Eric was in the hospital. We weren't really thinking about spaying her at that point. Then, when I have previously taken Norris to the vet, they cajole me about getting Norris neutered. I don't want to neuter Norris. Dogs can gain weight after that procedure and Norris is so cute as is. They also warned that hey may become aggressive. Their eyes widened when I said "Good, he could use a little aggression."

Norris is afraid of his toy basket. Just recently got over his fear of his food and water bowls. So, yes the dog could use some "balls." Anyway, the previous owner of Oreo also contacted Eric and advised not to breed her since Chihuahuas and other small dogs can have problems. Well, what the hell then no one would ever have another Chihuahua. And this lady was a breeder!! How the hell does she know if we have experience or not. Grr.

So, it just makes me think will I get a uterine infection or cancer because I'm not breeding and won't be? Norris has a vet appointment on Saturday for his distemper vaccine and I'm hoping they bring it up to Eric about having Norris neutered. I want to know what he says.

Amber