There is no dog in this picture

When the photos of the finished firehouse murals arrived in my email box, the first thing I noticed was:

there is no dog in this picture. The Dalmation for which I was lobbying must have run around the corner to whiz in the woods.

Lola would be willing to stand in for the Dalmation.

She (sadly) has to find new digs. Her owner, who is the second biggest dog-lover I know, just can't face burying another dog right now. I won't sugar-coat it: she has two bad habits (not counting a bark that sounds like you just ran over her tail. She doesn't use it often -- just when she really has something to say. ) She likes to be held and will lie still as a sack of rocks as you're carrying her the 1/2 mile home after chasing her cross-country because she is ... an Escape Artist. Oh, yeah. That's one of her bad habits. She's excellent at finding any weakness in a fence & exploiting it to the max. That's what makes her high-risk for the doggy cemetery. She doesn't watch for cars when she crosses the street. She is definitely a leash dog, although I firmly believe she would be a dream to train. The first command on the list would be "come." She's just curious, is that a crime?

Her other bad habit is trash can tipping but if you just keep the kitchen trash can on the counter, that problem is completely solved.

OK, so she has a few quirks but for some odd reason, I've fallen for this dog like I haven't fallen for a dog in years. And this after I spent yesterday afternoon chasing her through the neighborhood & carrying her home. Thank heavens for the border collie who herded her toward me instead of him. He was so silent it was scary.

Maybe I like her because she's not pushy and doesn't play any of the Alpha Dog games. Plus she's just the right size -- small enough to be portable but big enough to bite a bad guy -- and the perfect size for wearing a hand-knit doggy sweater.

And then again maybe I just have a soft spot for the underdog. Anyone looking for a young beagle to adopt?