Teddie, King of the Mountain

Day 5.  I wanted to tell you about my weight because it's a funny story!

When I arrived in California from the midwest I was only 3 pounds, eventhough my owner had been told I was 6.  But I probably was dehydrated from the horrible flight I had..so maybe I was 4 or 5..but I was small for my age!..

My owner took me in and right away started feeding my wonderful  food I had never had before.  Cooked natural chicken, carrots and sweet potatoes mixed with dry dog food..yum, yum.  And everyday, she told me to eat and grow "big and strong!".  So, I did EXACTLY what she told me.  I grew and grew and grew.  And at 8 months I was 22 pounds.  Now that is HUGE for a Westie at that age and I absolutely was NOT fat.  When I saw the Vet for my shots, she commented that I was overweight to my owner.  But after she did her exam she gave me an excellent bill of health and said I wasn't fat.  So, I decided to just keep growing.  Now, I am almost 2 years old and I weigh just shy of 30 pounds.  I am sure that I now hold the title of the Biggest and Strongest Westie in the U.S. My owner tells me that I can stop growing now because she can't lift me anymore.  And when I jump on her lap, she grunts..LOL But, I don't care.  I am a happy boy and I no longer am that little, shaking runt, she saw when I first arrived.  Of course, I have to be careful with Frankie, because he is an average sized Westie but I am twice as big....I am "King of the Mountain!!!".  That is me on the right...

I wanted to share a couple of videos with you today.  I have one of the first day I met Frankie and one of our first day at play in his new home..my place!  I think it proves what I good boy I was, and am and how nice I was to Frankie when we first met.  We knew we would be brothers from the very first meeting and you can see what a great time we had together.  Of course, I am very handsome and you can see how great I am playing with my squeeky toy and Frankie at the same  time!  Enjoy!!

Frankie Comes to Stay

Day 3.  Today I want to write about Frankie.  Frankie is a West Highland White Terrier just like me but smaller..ha! ha!.  I didn't tell you how big I am.  I will talk about food and weight tomorrow.  That is worth a separate blog post!  Today, it's about Frankie who I first met at a West Highland White Terrier "meet up" put on by the Northern California West Highland White Terrier Association.  Frankie was brought there by the head of the Orange County Westie Rescue.  Frankie was found on the streets of Orange County and was rescued and living with a Westie family until he was well enough for adoption.  Frankie had lost a lot of weight and hair during his time on the streets.  But boy, you should see him now!  I have before and after photos I can show you here.

Frankie the Westie Rescue

Anyway, my owner had been trying for months to find me a buddy and then she heard about Frankie and after many emails and calls the meeting was put together.  You see, in order for Frankie to come live with us I had to meet him in person and be "approved" by Frankie and his rescue group.  So, for a few weeks my owner kept telling me that I was going to meet him and I had to be a good boy.  If I wanted Frankie to come live with us and be my buddy then it was up to me to make sure Frankie knew he was welcome in our home.  I was nervous!  That is a lot of pressure to put on a dog like me.  But I was excited too and I knew the day had come when I was in the car and started seeing all these other dogs just like me.

There was a lot of talk about me too.  I am big and I overheard someone say they thought I was the biggest Westie they had ever seen!  I wasn't sure if that was going to hurt my chances with Frankie or not, so I kept my bark to myself.  Then Frankie appeared.  So much smaller than me, but it turned out the vet had told the Westie Rescue that he was probably about the same age!  We sniffed each other..no offensive smells..so off we went for a walk.  I liked him right away and I was very careful not to create anything that might spoil our chances of going home together.  And it worked!  Next thing I knew we were in the car together, Mom was happy, and off we went.  Frankie was timid at first and followed me around a lot so I kept my distance for a few days and didn't do anything to let him think I was alpha dog.  I figured he knew that already.  So, I let him eat my food and share my toys and even share my spot on the sofa.   That was 1 year ago.  The Frankie I first met is not the same Frankie today I'll tell you.  He barks too much and sometimes I can't even tell what the heck he's barking at.  Then he chews my ear and feet to get me to play when I'm napping.  And he's a food stealer.  I should have known better than to let him eat my food when he first arrived.  Now, I have to give him the evil eye each time the food is ready to let him know to stay away.

Me  and Frankie (sniffing)

And the best part of this story is that he is not my buddy, he is my brother now.  I protect him.  I play with him.  I sleep with him and I lick his ears back just to let him know, that even if I'm alpha, that doesn't mean I don't love him.  I love him very much. We are Westie soul brothers!

My First West Highland Terrier Friend

Vickie

Day 2.  My new home is the topic today.  I came to live in a home in Redwood Shores with an 18 year old West Highland Terrier named Vickie.  I wasn't sure how to treat her as she was almost blind and partly deaf but feisty as a pup!  So, I soon figured out the way to give her exercise was to get real close and nudge her side so she'd spin around and try to grab me!  That didn't work very well with my owner though.  At night sometimes, I'd watch very quietly as my owner gave Vickie fluids in a tube through her skin.  She said that Vickie was old and needed fluids but that at some point Vickie would get tired of the whole thing and want to move on to a new dog life.  And that happened one day.  Even though Vickie was gone I missed having her around and soon I started letting my owner know it was time to bring me a brother or sister to play with.  And then about 2 months after Vickie passe, along came my buddy Frankie!  Now that is a story to tell and tomorrow I will tell you all about the first time I met Frankie and I even have a picture of us together on that day.  Right now I"m going to go sit next to Frankie on the couch as we like to spend time staring out the window waiting for a cat or dog walker to come by.  I can't wait to tell you about Frankie tomorrow....

My First Life Story

Hello!  My name is Teddie and I am a West Highland White Terrier, or Westie, for short.  I live in Half Moon Bay, California.  I am 1 1/2 years old and I am old enough now to start putting my life down on paper (or blog!).  And so starting today, I am going to tell my story every day so everyone reading knows what life as a West Highland Terrier is like.

I was born in Arkansas.  I don't remember much about my early days after birth.  My earliest memory is really not a very happy one, but luckily it changed completely when I met my new friend and human companion.

You see, I was sent by air weighing a wee 3 pounds in a locked carrier on American Airlines to San Francisco.  I was very scared, and it was made worse by the fact that American Airlines didn't take care of me when 2 of my flights were delayed.  What should have been an 8 hours journey lasted 14 hours, and I was given no water or food.  I was shaking and miserable and dirty and didn't know where I was.

But, when my carrier was brought to my new owner, a kind, soothing voice called out to me and pulled me gently from the back of my crate and told me not to worry, but that everything was going to be ok.  From that moment on, I never looked back and this is the true beginning of my new life.  A life that has been filled with love, fun and joy every single day...except for the day I was attacked by a maniac Pug! But I'll save that story for another blog post.  Tomorrow, I will start by telling you the story of "growing big and strong".