This is Nola, another of my Katrina dogs. She came from Lamar-Dixon Expo Center, the big triage shelter, where I found her without food or water in her crate. There was a note on the crate that said "Did not feed or water. Too aggressive." The time on the note was 36 hours previously...
Nola had obviously been caught in the flood waters, and her skin was caked with a kind of greasy black residue. She was terrified, and had been tagged with an "Aggressive" marker, but what she really was, was scared. And as tiny as she is, instead of cowering, she was kickin' butt and takin' names. I loved her spirit. When I first got her home, I thought she was some kind of Jack Russell and Chihuahua mix. I was calling her "Little Rat Dog" for about a week, when I discovered that... she is a little Rat Dog! A Rat Terrier, to be exact - a breed I'd never heard of before, but which is recognized in the show ring.
Nola has the appetite and heart of a dog a hundred times larger than her puny self, and loves to chase after the larger dogs, barking furiously and non-stop. She also loves to cuddle, and likes nothing better than to snuggle on my chest, place her ear against my heartbeat, and go to sleep.
She is also a bit asthmatic, and snores thunderously. When she first arrived home, her tummy was still affected by the stress and all, and she was an air polluter without equal. Happily, that is no longer the case, but for a while there I was driving around in the November with the car windows rolled ALL the way down!
She has a wicked sense of humor, and loves to play hide and seek in the bedclothes. And even though she is a yapper - it's that terrier thing: it kinda goes with the territory - and she definitely ain't wired right, she makes me laugh all the time. And I knew, very early on, that she was a keeper.
Since I never, ever thought I would ever own a yappy ankle-biter, we are an interesting pair. I guess it just goes to show that you really can't choose who you fall in love with...
[dog photos]
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