Tuesday, February 24, 2015

TODAY IS SHORT-HAIRED (SMOOTH COAT) DACHSHUND DAY!


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I have so enjoyed posting about the various coats and colors of my beloved doxies the past couple of weeks!  Today, I declare as SHORT-HAIRED (SMOOTH COAT) DACHSHUND DAY!  I must admit that I'm kinda partial to this type of coat, since that's the only kind our family has ever owned.

The first doxie I had was when I was about ten years old and we lived in Bremerhaven, Germany (Dad was military).  Elia was a red, smooth coat, and I loved her to pieces.  I've written often about her, so I won't do so now.

Our current doxie Duke and granddawg Shadow are both black-and-tan smooth coat dachshunds.  I will post some of their photos, and then other dachshunds.  For those who haven't heard, Shadow is the inspiration for my series, THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES books written by Sarge the dachshund.  Duke is introduced in Book 2, I AM DACHSHUND.  If interested, visit my Amazon author page for more information about these books:  www.amazon.com/author/mavisdukehinton.

Enjoy!

Shadow, who is 14 years old:






Duke, who is seven years old:






Other dachshunds:










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Dachshunds . . . you gotta love 'em in any coat or color!

Monday, February 23, 2015

TODAY IS LONG-HAIRED DACHSHUND DAY!

I am declaring today as LONG-HAIRED DACHSHUND DAY on this blog!  Although my family has always owned the short-haired (or smooth coat) doxies, I think the long- haired variety is absolutely beautiful! Below are photos of all kinds of beautiful long-haired doxies, as well as information about them.

When we adopted Duke at eight weeks of age, the doxie farm where  he was born had all kinds of doxies, and the long-haired ones were stunning.  One thing that struck us about the AKC breeder:  although she had over 100 dogs, not a single dog acted mean or "yappy."  I put my hand out to pet one of them, and about fifty tongues started licking it!  And as we arrived on her deck, all those doxies were barking--you can imagine how loud that must have been!  She had a cane, and when she knocked on that deck three times, all those dogs stopped barking immediately!  Right away, we knew we were in the presence of a doxie master.  


It had also been very hot that August, and she told us that when it got too hot outside, she just brought ALL the dogs inside the house.  Of course, her house was dog friendly:  she had tile floors and simple furniture--but no odor was present and it was very clean.  She also said that the "good" dogs got the honor of sleeping with her one night (she was a widow).  She added that on the previous night, SEVEN doxies slept in the bed with her!  Doxie lovers, this lady is "our kind" of dog lover, yes?  

Her assistant took us around to the cages inside the home of mama doxies and their litters of babies.  We were looking for a black-and tan baby just like Shadow, and that's when we laid our eyes upon Duke.  HE WAS THE ONE!

In I AM SARGE, Book 1 of THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES, Sarge is adopted from Mrs. Fitzgerald's farm, and she is patterned after the breeder and the farm where we adopted Duke.  Our daughter Holly and son-in-law Philip had previously adopted their Shadow from the same breeder.

Below is AKC information about doxie coats:

Coat
Defining the coat of a dachshund is not at all an easy task, but overall there are three ‘variables’ in the dachshund coat equation.
  • Hair
  • Color
  • Pattern

Hair

There are three types of dachshund coats; long-hairedwire-haired, and short-haired.  (courtesy of www.everyonelovesadachsund.com)
Ta da!  Here are our beautiful long-haired doxies for today:






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Dachshunds . . . whatever their coat and color, you gotta love 'em!

Saturday, February 21, 2015

HOW DO THEY BREATHE UNDER THERE?

Photo by Margie Conroy DeVries

Do you ever check your doxie(s) under the blankets to see if they are breathing??  Sometimes we wonder how they can breathe under several blankets, but after all, they love to burrow.

This cute photo was posted in one of my numerous Facebook dachshund groups.  The doxie mom snapped the photo of her two fur babies sleeping, and EVERY doxie owner can commiserate, because we've seen this view of our doxies many times!  In fact, Duke is under a blankie on the bed in the office as I type this post.  This time, however, "everything" is tucked underneath the blankie.

Dachshunds . . . you gotta love 'em.

Thursday, February 19, 2015

WHEN DACHSHUNDS WANT TO PLAY, THEY MEAN NOW!



My doxie Duke seems to want to play when I'm especially busy--I think he must have some sort of sixth sense about it!  Or, at the exact time when I want to edit a manuscript or rewrite a passage (and need my wits, such as they are, about me)--you guessed it--Duke brings his ball or squeak toy and drops it at my feet.  He wants me to throw it for him to fetch, or he wants to play tug-of-war.  Doxies are big on tug-of war.  And he's so strong!

He's a dawg who's tough to ignore, you know, because he simply will not take no for an answer.  Oh, I've tried ignoring him, telling him no, or just throwing that blasted ball a time or two, hoping to satisfy him.  HA!  It doesn't work:  he wants to play until he doesn't want to play, meaning that I must throw his toy for him at least 20 times or pull on a toy in tug-of-war until my biceps are admirable. By then, I'm out of the mood for writing or editing.  He's like a toddler--he wants what he wants, WHEN he wants it!

I still love him, though.  Good thing he's so cute, though; that has saved him from being choked :).


Dachshunds . . . you gotta love 'em.

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

A DACHSHUND'S TRIBUTE Excerpt

Today I've added an excerpt to Book 4 on this blog's pages.  Locate the page buttons beneath the title of this blog - click on the one for A DACHSHUND'S TRIBUTE Excerpt.

Enjoy!


Monday, February 16, 2015

I AM SARGE



I AM SARGE, BOOK 1 (Second Edition) of THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES, will be released this week in paperback on Amazon. The Kindle edition will follow shortly, for only $0.99 (for a limited time)! 

Wondering what this book is about, doxie lovers? I'll let Sarge tell you himself:

“I am Sarge the super dog, named after my Papa Duke, who was a sergeant in the Army—and I am very proud of my special name. I was a scared little puppy when Mama and Daddy adopted me at eight weeks of age, but quite a handsome and intelligent dachshund now.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I’m known as a chow hound extraordinaire, and believe me, I have earned the title! Papa calls me his granddawg, and I know I’ll do great and mighty things someday. Grandma says I’m not only a 
granddawg, but also a GRAND DOG.

"Daddy and mama love me, and inside my home is all the warmth, fun, laughter, and love that I could ever want or need. The only thing lacking is people food. I never get enough of that, but don’t blame a dawg for trying. I also do my best to protect them, but Mama says I’m too loud. (Isn’t that the point of barking—to be heard??)

"Papa thinks like I do, a remarkable ability for a human. So does his buddy, Sellars—both of them are chow hounds like me, and they sometimes sneak me some good food when no one is looking. That makes me feel loved.

"I have lived through some zany times in this family--I even saved Papa’s life when he was attacked . . . by a fence. Such experiences only seem to happen to Papa.

"All in all, my humans are tricky to figure out, ‘cause they don’t always say what they mean—but I can 

Shadow today
handle them. After all, I AM SARGE."

A heartwarming tale of family, joy, good food, and unconditional love, Sarge’s story will bring warmth and smiles to readers of all ages.

Sarge is based upon my doxie granddawg, Shadow (that's his actual photo on the cover).

Dachshunds . . . you gotta love 'em!

Saturday, February 14, 2015

THE BEST VALENTINE OF ALL


Happy Valentine's Day, doxie lovers.  So many types of gifts are given on this day, all in the name of love: chocolates, roses, four-foot-tall teddy bears, pajamas, jewelry, and who knows what else!

As a Christian, I'd like to share the best valentine gift of all, and one need only to accept it to enjoy it for eternity:


May today be a blessing to you.