Pet stories - Pixie

Sometimes last summer, we decided to adopt a dog. We wanted a small size, not a puppy but not old either, playful but without destructive intentions, good tempered, hypoallergenic (yes, there is such a thing!, it actually means that the dog doesn't shed, which is a blessing if you live in a rental with carpet on the floor, like we do) and, preferably, a boy. Pretty specific, right?! Some of these were my desires but most of them were my husband's specific requirements. He was hard to persuade in adopting a dog after a disastrous experience with a kitten we found abandoned during Hurricane Ike's time in Houston. Eduardo, the kitten, was named after the second hurricane threat in Houston, which turned out to be a false alarm, so we hoped that the kitten will be as tame and easy to deal with as the namesake "hurricane". But, as we say in Romania, our careful plans didn't match reality: little Eduardo was untamed, mean, had rage fits after being left home alone, too young to be fixed (which could have calmed him down a bit), biting, scratching and chewing everything that could be possibly bitten, scratched or chewed. Despite his very good looks,

Is it only me or Eduardo did look like a little devil?

when nothing stopped to bit me so hard that I had to painfully remove his teeth from my right hand and couldn't write properly for a couple of days, I, his mom, decided to give up on him. We found a family with small children and a decent size backyard and that was it! We later heard that he turned out to be a she, that the new owners adored her and .... declawed her, to save their furniture and body parts.

So, a couple of years later, after intense negotiations, here we were, at the Poodle Rescue of North Houston, ready to be pet parents again. This time, I did my homework on PetFinder, and already found a 2 years-old Bichon poodle mix, a white boy names Barney, with a wet nose and a pair of dark playful eyes like little M&Ms. We were delighted to meet him and took him out in the shelter's garden for a trial but ... he was more interested in the treasure of flavors hidden in the bushes than in playing with us. Fortunately, his determination in sniffing everything that moves drove him to the cute behind of another little candidate, a cock-a-poo known as Pixie, who was visiting with another potential adoptive family. Barney brought us to her but there is no question that Pixie CHOSE US! The minute she saw us, she jumped on my lap to diligently lick my face and never stopped ever since!  She must be a very good politician ...
Youtube video of Pixie's adoption


In the beginning, she was:

very small (only 14 lb.)...

...and very shy!

To Cristi's delight, a friend pointed out that the black markings on her back resemble the "pi" sign:

She's definitely daddy's princess!

Pretty soon, she put a "little" weight. She's 20 lb. now, above the acceptable weight limit for traveling inside the airplane when we'll go overseas (she'll have to go cargo, with the big & mean boys!!!!) and became fluffy like a teddy bear or rather like a lamb. Among many other names we call her in both languages, some not so PG-13, e.g. Pixu', Pixulina, "Pixu' lu' mama" (Romanians go figure!), I call her Little Swiss Cow and found a mini cow bell for her favorite collar ...
Oh, and she can JUMP. If you don't believe me, here's the proof:

We are definitely happy to be Pixie's parents!

All three Diaconu's at Christmas 2010