Fur Child

Meet Brutus, aka Fur Child.

We got Brutus back in 2007 after we moved to Idaho from Ohio. His official name is Brutus, The Buckeye Beagle. Man Child named him. He was homesick and mad that we moved him from his beloved Ohio during his senior year. We thought having a new pet would help everyone adjust to the move.

We’d had to put down our dachshund, Heidi, before we moved. Heidi was the doggy love of my life. She was it for me. She adored me and followed me everywhere. She was a faithful companion during a very difficult time in my life. She’s been gone for 4 years now, and I still miss her.

However, this post is about Dumbas, er, I mean, Brutus. He’s very much a boy’s dog. The woman in his life before he came to us abused him, so he’s not that interested in me. He really is the only dog I’ve ever had that almost has a cat ‘tude. He could care less if pet him or not. He only wants you when he needs something from you. Or you have pizza. Then he’s very interested.

If you have pizza, this is the look he gives you. He’s very intent. He whimpers. His whole body shakes. It’s pretty much doggy crack to him. Brutus has done all the typical dog things. He’s chewed shoes – but only mine. He’s buried dog bones in the yard. In fact, all his Christmas raw hide bones are buried in the snow in the yard. He’s gonna be surprised in the spring to see them all laying on the grass. When he was younger, he was very suspicious of certain things. Check him out on this video. He’s not sure what to make of the boys’ new toy.

 

He pretty much sleeps all day long. On every piece of furniture I own. I’ve given up chasing him off couches. No matter what I do, he just climbs right back up.

 

Buddy loves his dog like no other boy has loved a dog before. He lets the dog sleep in his room – sometimes even shares his bed with him when he feels like lifting Brutus up on the bed. Buddy worries for the day when Brutus’ hip dysplasia gets too bad because he knows we have a long-standing family policy for pets of “Get Better or Go to Iowa” (Our euphamism for being put down. When Hubs left Ohio for Idaho, he took Heidi with him to have her put down. Hubs first stop on the trip was Iowa so we told the kids that Heidi was “Going to Iowa”). I’m not going to go into debt for a dog.

Despite all the annoyances to me, Brutus is a loved member of our family. We put up with his gas. He know that given the chance, he’s gonna get into the trash. Despite the fleas that won’t leave him alone, no matter what remedy we try, he’s a part of our family. He more than filled his original purpose – he helped the kids adjust to a new home, not just once, but three times now.

He’s our Fur Child. No matter what he’s done, you simply can’t stay mad at that face for long.

I’m linking up to DebbieDoos Pet Party.