Little Honey of Bohemia

I am so very heavy with grief this week. I am mourning the loss of my dearly loved Napoleon and I cry every day several times a day, as does my Mom. We really miss our little boy, who was part super-companion and part devil. We will miss him for a long time and always keep him in our memory. I want to rush home every day like I usually did to let him out, walk him and play games, and then let him lay on my lap and stroke his ears, then I remember he is gone. I see his toys and especially his "dog toy" (he knew this phrase, for a stuffed animal Yorkie that he loved to chew on), his minky dog bed, and it makes me so sad. I miss feeling the weight of him on or next to my feet in bed.

My Mom has been thinking of a new dog for about a year, and I generally nix her suggestions as not appropriate for her; too big, too hairy, health problems, too hyper, too dumb; on and on. Always I find an issue. I have wanted the "perfect" dog for her, as she keeps telling me she wants "her own dog." Napoleon was definitely "my dog" but secondarily my Dad's as Napoleon thought my Dad was the big Alpha. He loved to roll on and lick my Dad's bed pillow. Like a devotee of his Guru, Napoleon wanted to be like and smell like his Grampy. And of course Grampy fed him beef jerky every day; they had a little routine where Napoleon would get in the car when my Dad came home and would bark three times and paw at the glove box until it magically opened and the bag of beef jerky came out.

This week I was spending a whole lot of time looking for my perfect dog, when by chance I found a dog that is perfect for Mom and that I would also love to have for myself: a Norfolk Terrier. I have known a few dozen Norfolks, all in New York area. I have seen one on the west coast, Jackie's beloved Blossom (there are only about 300 Norfolks born in the US each year so they are relatively rare and breeding is tightly controlled). But the ones I know have been very consistent across the breed: very stable, very loving, highly intelligent and excellent companions. Not physically demanding as they get older but full of life and love as puppies, both great for my Mom. After looking at many dozens of breeds, I can't find any objection when it comes to this breed. I will post more on the breed later. I did not expect to find our perfect dog so soon, but here she is and she is indeed perfect for us. And we need her now. Maybe she is heaven sent to us..??

I had the pick of a litter, from the Czech Republic. A European dog! My dream! I chose the pup on the far right, which is appropriate for Mom as she is Far Right Republican, and we are naming her Honey. I am officially calling her Little Honey of Bohemia with a nod to her forebears. I have been to the former Czechoslovakia, now the Czech Republic. It is a fascinatingly beautiful land; the people are real, the landscape is beautiful; I remember the towering silver aspens in the wind and the rolling fields. The language was foreign to me but I had a true connection there; they are really good people and this is a wonderful place for a puppy to come from; I am going to make her a bed of a cloth I bought in her country.

The only thing that can fill our void and ease our grief is a new puppy. She will arrive in the next few weeks and the expectation of this little bundle of joy has eased our pain; this is a little dog that I will be able to train to the hilt and Mom will be able to love to bits.

Many thanks to Donna for all her help.