Happy Birthday Miss Payslee!

Today is Miss Payslee's 2nd birthday.. Wow! It's been a fast two years. Seems like just yesterday when I was so heartbroken over losing my first shih-tzu, Pandora to pancreatitis.

Pandora was the first dog who taught me how to be a good dog mom. She was so ornery and just really had a mind of her own. There were several times when I would come home, and she would have eaten a bowl of candy..One time in particular I came home to find her sucking on a sucker with the stick hanging out of her mouth! She didn’t like to stay home alone, so she would push out my window screens on nice days, let herself out, and go across to my neighbors house. She would then let herself in through their doggie door, jump up on their couch, and watch TV with them until I got home. Many days I would come home to see the PSO guy, shirtless, cigar in his mouth, carrying Pandora under his right arm to bring her back home. He got used to her just going over there because she did it so frequently! Another time when I was letting her run off-leash, she ran into a pen full of Longhorns..My heart seriously quit beating when she walked right up to one of them and sat down in front of it, as if to say “Hello giant Friend, I’m a shih-Tzu!”.. Thankfully the Longhorn just bent his head down, sniffed her, and then walked away. At that point I raced in to get her..she seriously had NO FEAR. What a great dog.. My heart was so broken when she died that I didn’t think I would ever want another Tzu..But low and behold, when I went to schedule my hospice volunteering the coordinator had just had a new batch of puppies. A littler of two. One black and white, and One Red and white.. She asked me if I wanted to see them, and at first I said, No way.. But then she said “I know your heart is breaking for Pandora, but puppies make everyone smile”.. So I went back there, and that’s when I fell in love with Miss Payslee..

I knew I didn’t want the black and white one, since Pan was black and white..So I made up my mind that day, that a month later, I’d be taking home Miss Pays.. Except that wasn’t her name to start out with. At first I was calling her Harper. I would go visit her every week and take pics of her..She got to where she would dance around when she heard my voice..and the day I took her home, she didn’t even cry for her mom or sister. However, I knew at that point, that she was NOT a Harper..She was already turning into a little devil, and acting like a wild bird…So I decided on Payslee May. I thought Rally would be excited to have another girl in the house..WRONG. Rally couldn’t stand her..and of course all she wanted to do was bite at him, chase him, and act foolish.. There were times I thought “This ain’t gonna work”.. But thankfully Miss Pays was smart, and figured out her boundaries quick.

I started training her the day I brought her home. We put on a harness, and learned to walk on a leash. She weighed 1.2 pounds at that point. Such a tiny girl. But you couldn’t tell by her personality..She was feisty, and hilarious to me. If you tried to put her in a crate while driving she would wail, and cry like you had shot her. I told myself that she was going to be crated at night…You know how long that lasted? Not even one night..She wanted to sleep right by me in bed, and since I’m a light sleeper, I let her..She was potty-trained by 12 weeks..and I was so impressed with how smart she was, and eager to please..She completed her puppy class right on time, and she was therapy certified before even turning a year old..What a good girl!

Her favorite things? Running with Sawyer as fast as she can.. Cream cheese frosting, riding in her car-seat by me in the car, visiting her grandma Robbie at the farm, and pestering MJ because he won’t pay attention to her. She has brought me so much joy. Every day I try to do something that I know will make her life happier, because I know she does that for me, and all the people she visits.. Happy Birthday Miss Payslee, you are my sweet biscuit girl!