The Burger has landed...

... and is so far doing very well adjusting to life in the big apple. He plays well with his older brother Bailey who has accepted him into his crate at night, has dealt with the tugs and pulls and hugs of the resident toddler and has come along with with the concept of leash walking and pottying. He's a sweet as can be. A little video of the boys with Maya laughing in the background.

Along came a Burger.

We have succumbed to the scrumptious sweetness of puppy smell, surrendered to too-cute-to-be-true pictures of puppy eyes and floppy ears, and finally gave up when we realized that Bailey was still sitting by the door after we left for several hours because he still has not gotten used to being alone.   Despite our best efforts to remain a one dog household, we have failed profoundly and as result Bailey and Maya have a new little brother  -  and his name is Burger.

The smallest of the 4 boys in the latest Hennessey litter of 6 long haired dachshunds, Burger has started to steal hearts at his very young age of 3 months.  He's a lover who asks to be held and give kisses. Although we were resisting for a while, we had given the option of adopting a Hennessey bred hound some considerable thought. Bailey was clearly in need of a friend but needed his companion to be the emotional rock that Kahlua was, visceral wreck that he is. Working full time and being in a NYC apartment with a resident toddler - made puppies or a rescue dog needing training and time to adjust challenging, and a little more than we felt we could handle.  So after some careful consideration and planning for the little guy to join us at the end of the summer to give him a little time to grow up and learn some doggy manners, we committed to the dog. It was the best option for us and the right thing to do by Bailey.

Of course now that I know he's headed this way I can't wait to have him! Maya will love her new roommate, she's always asking to see the puppy pictures ever since we went to Wellesley to see the 10 day old litter. She spent some more time with Burger man and the rest of the crew last month, (at 8 weeks old, seen here trying to eat Maya's shoe) when pulling ears, tails, biting and shredding papers were the preferred puppy activities.  The several puppy crates in the kitchen created a personal petting zoo.

The best thing is that Burger is coming to visit this weekend in East Hampton and spend some one-on-one with his older canine brother, who will undoubtedly skulk that he has to put up with a puppy, though I'm confident he will grow to love the idea, and Maya the Menace who is going to be all over him yelling 'puppy! puppy!'.  Burger & Bailey - have to admit, it has a nice ring to it.

For Kahlua

Yesterday afternoon we said goodbye to our sweet old boy, gave him a kiss and let him go. He had been in kidney failure for several months, and on lots of pills and getting subcutaneous fluids at least twice a week to help flush out his system and do the job that his kidneys could not. We were lucky that the vet in our area in LIC agreed to let me bring him twice a week after work to have his fluids done because it was not going well at home - he fought like a doberman!! Feisty little doxie, body of a shrimp, heart of a lion. But the fluids did make him feel better so we kept it up. The last few weeks he deteriorated rapidly and stopped eating and we knew it was time. It was only fair. Prolonging it further would risk him having a seizure or a stroke and he was feeling lousy. I think he was tired. We said our goodbye Tuesday morning and I took him to the vet Tuesday afternoon and he agreed. His passing was peaceful, he was snoring in true Kahlua fashion in my arms and he passed very quickly. Never easy, but it was the right thing to do to help him along the path he was already on.

As many of you know Kahlua was my first dog. I adopted him in the early summer of 2004 in Massachusetts before heading off to grad school at Duke. I knew I would be living alone and really wanted to find a canine roommate. I found him on Petfinder, small adult dog about 7 or 8, with an even temperament. Perfect. I met him and knew that was it, he was mine. He was so excited to see us when we came to pick him up for good two weeks later, and get him out of the apartment he was sharing with way too many dogs for the space - a big hearted rescuer took him in when his family surrendered him and did the best she could for the dogs under her care. He kept running back and forth to the door and back to us, as if saying 'let's go! let's go!', little legs doing double time as I was trying to sign the adoption contract in the kitchen. Kahlua was ready for his next adventure in life.

We spent a lovely two years at Duke.  I have fond memories of coming home to him sleeping on the couch, getting up and stretching when he heard the door before coming to greet me. He flew home with me for breaks, went to the beach in East Hampton, spent Christmas in Wellesley, even came to work with me when I interned at NOW. He was such a pal, and always happy to be included. My second year we began going to doxie Meetups  in Durham where I met a woman who was very involved in dachshund rescue through DRNA, and I adopted Bailey. And the dynamic duo Bailey-Kahlua mudslide was born! I was hooked. Loved the breed, and wanted to be more involved in rescue.  I have Kahlua to thank for that. He had a wonderful little personality and has been an anchor for Bailey who has a more anxious disposition. They've been roommates and bedmates ever since Bailey joined us at 6 months in November of 2005. Bailey loved Kahlua, would always engage him to play as Kahlua tolerated his puppiness. I moved back to New York and to our apartment in Murray Hill and they were the self-proclaimed kings of the block, keeping each other company while we were at work, barking at all the other dogs in our building and the neighborhood, big or small.  People would laugh to see such peep-squeeks bark and lunge with all their might. All bark and no bite. Two years later came Maya to add to the circus and the five of us moved together to LIC, our pups taking all the change in stride.

For the moment, we are all sad that he cannot be with us, and trying to adjust to life and our routine without him.  He required a lot of attention, so the absence is definitely felt. We are also so grateful for having had him in our life. He was a wonderful little dog.  Personally, I have him to thank for showing me the ropes and making me a life long dog owner. If Kahlua taught us anything it was the tremendous potential of rescue dogs who truly need a second chance to love and be loved in return. My life is so much richer for it. Please leave your comments and any memories or stories that you have of him. We would love to read them and reminisce.

 Enjoy bossing all the big dogs around in doggy heaven Kahlua. Demand treats and belly rubs, and enjoy your naps in the sun. You were very loved and will be greatly missed.  Lots of love and face licks.