Is this not the cutest dog in the world? Okay, I know I asked that yesterday, but how could anyone think the one is cuter than the other? Like Jojo yesterday, Annabelle came to us already named. She also had very little back story other than knowing that she was found wandering the streets one county over.
She is one of those dogs that has a lot of "red" in her and I'm not talking about the color of her fur. There are some dogs (often seen in hounds) that have a lack of pigment in places you would expect to see dark skin and it often looks pink, like Annabelle's nose. Her eyelids are red too. Humans can also have this condition and it is known as Vitiligo.
The first vet we took Annabelle to was an old-school vet who is now retired. I asked him one time about the growth on her nose. He use to wear magnifying lens much like a pair of glasses flipped up on top of his head. He flipped them down and leaned over to examine her nose and, after a minute said, "I believe that is a hyperkeratosis (which is nothing more than a thickening of the skin)." I replied, "Oooh, I think I have some of those," which I thought was funny, but he acted like he hadn't even heard me. Oh, well...
Pekingese are connoisseurs of blankets. At least the two we have are. We had gotten Jojo the AKC bed shown in a photo yesterday when we first adopted him. When we adopted Annabelle, I got her a bed that was considerably smaller. She is very small for a Pekingese at only ten pounds. The bed fit her perfect. As soon as we got it, however, Jojo decided he liked it too and would shoehorn himself into it and hog the bed. Annabelle, however, wouldn't use his big AKC bed. Although it is a very tight fit, he loves the little bed. For some reason, many Pekingese love tight spots. So, we ended up getting a third bed and now the two of them can play musical beds all they want. And they do.
Here is Annabelle all snugged down in her bed. I found a cat bell to put on her collar because she is so quiet. I could never tell where she was. One day, I suddenly realized I hadn't seen her for quite a while and started looking through the entire house. Upstairs and down - I couldn't find her anywhere and she wasn't answering to my call. Finally, I just happened to glance over at the couch and see her as she lay there watching my entertaining antics. I hadn't even looked there because they are not allowed up on the couch - at least not unsupervised. That is when I decided to get a cat bell. Only thing is, I have started to lose some of the higher range of sound and I don't hear her bell at all. I have to ask my wife where she is.
Annabelle loves to play. She is very particular about which toy she wants to play with and usually cannot be dissuaded once she has made up her mind. While she is very smart, she simply will not bring a toy back to you after you throw it for her. Either she feels it is beneath her or she does not want to share.
In the summer, she loves to sit out on the porch and look for lizards. She never catches them because they are just too fast, but it keeps her occupied for hours.
Last winter, she heard a bird rustling around under a snow-covered bush and stuck her head in. I'm pretty sure she was thinking it was a lizard rustling around in the leaves.
I am partial to small dogs. I like a dog small enough to keep your lap warm in the winter. In fact, Royalty in China bred them for just that purpose. If you are thinking about getting a dog, I would encourage you to adopt. There is such a supply of wonderful animals in need of homes for a host of reasons. I can recommend Potomac Valley Pekingese Rescue (http://www.potomacpekes.org/) without hesitation if you live in the Maryland/Virginia area. If I could, I would have ten or twenty more. But, I'm just glad I have these two that just happen to be the cutest dogs in the world.
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