11 and a half years ago, a lady had to have heart surgery. She entrusted her daughters to take care of her little dog and find her a good home. Well, they didn't do that. They took the little dog to the county shelter. There the little dog became sick and couldn't understand what was going on. She just knew that, for the fourth time in her little life, people had let her down. She would cower in the corner and just look out at people who came in to look for a new dog. The tag on her door said "Bites, not housebroken". My partner went to the shelter every night to look for a few puppies that had gotten out (not from us) and he fell for the little dog. The day that her time was up - he brought her home. Straight from the shelter into my bed. Yuck! The poor little thing had colitis (that's why she wasn't house broken - she was sick!) and she stank to high heaven. That is where the biting comes in. Joy did not tolerate grooming without a fight. She turned into a double headed monster once you tried to brush her tail or legs - and forget messing with her feet! We did it though, got her cleaned up and taken care of.
I helped her over the colitis with meds and chicken and rice. Then added a special food I had researched until I felt very comfortable feeding it.
It wasn't very long before the little ShihTzu started trusting us. She was a cuddly, patient person. Loved men! If a couple came to visit, Joy would make a bee-line to the man. It was kind of funny, I used to call her my little floozy.
She trained me to sleep on my left side and not move the entire night. I would lay down and she would cuddle up with her butt against mine. If I moved, she'd nip my butt!
She NEVER showed any signs of aggression and so I started taking her to Nursing Homes etc. She loved it. No matter what the person being visited did, Joy never flinched, growled or reacted in any but a loving way. Once, at the Adult Care Center, a person with involuntary movement was holding her. Nothing unusual about that. But then the patients muscles contracted and he was squeezing the breath out of the little dog. Her eyes started bulging but she never moved. I had to pry the man's arms apart to get her relief.
Her weak point were children. She was afraid of them. When kids came to visit, Joy would hide under the bed. We found out that she had been with a family and the boys used her for a football - that would make me scared too. So we kept her away from children and all was well.
When new fosterdogs came into the house, she would sniff them up and down and then let them know that she was in charge here. And they all (even the really big ones) accepted it with no questions asked. Joy was the only dog that could get into anybody's foodbowl and not be growled at. I wish I had her self esteem!
Over the years, many people fell in love with the friendly little ShihTzu that was always by our side. She walked for Hospice, against child abuse and every other cause I wanted to contribute to. Spectators were always going "aaahhh" when we came around a corner. The first 8 Christmas parades she walked under her own steam, then she got carried or rode in the float. It will not be the same without her, that's for sure.
For years Joy visited Kevin's mother (and various other residents) every night at the Nursing Home. Even after she was almost blind and by then 19 years old, she would wake up at 6 pm and be ready to boggy. Granny passed away before the little dog that brought her so much joy.
Then the visits became more sporadic, but when she realized what was going on, she would be ready - no leaving her behind!
When it came time to groom her, she still - after all that time - would fight like a banshee. Many times she threw her back out and we had to see the doggy chiropractor who patiently put things back where they belonged. Thank God for the Pamplin Animal Wellness Services!
Joy had trouble with arthritis - and at PAWS was treated with acupuncture - always with great success. And I didn't have to try to give her pills - what a relief.
In her later years, my little Joy became very picky about her food and it became increasingly difficult to sneak a pill into a foodthing. But once a dog is 18 years old - heck, as far as I am concerned, I'll feed them whatever they want. So she got Braunschweiger to coat her med's, or a mix of creamcheese and peanutbutter, or ground beef carefully blended with little oregano - whatever the flavor of the day was.
Her last day on earth she spent with her favorite person - Kevin - and when I came home from an adoption event, he told me about her rolling on the ground and not being able to stop. Later that evening this happened again. She had never had a seizure before and now two in one day. We drove to the Emergency Vet and they convinced Kevin that his little dog had no chance of getting any better. We had her put down in his arms.
I miss the little crap like you wouldn't believe. For so long she had been always under my feet, always beside me on the couch, always to be taken care of, she was like my little time piece. The rhythm is gone out of my day. Even after several months, I still turn around and look for her. I still pick the best part of the meat out for her - until I catch myself. And then I'm sad.
Miss Joy had a presence. Something not to be put into words, but unmistakably hers alone. She could have been in a crowd of dogs and still would have stood out. Her sense of "I" was never in doubt. Life had not been kind to her until she came here, but it certainly did not beat her down.
Rest in peace my little boss woman!
