Winther's Dot "Dakota"

Famous Words: “No More Dogs”

I know lots of folks utter that statement; my husband, Ray, and I thought we meant it back in 2001. We had an aging Sheltie, Dulcinea, and figured when she died and we finally retired we could travel without the worry of doggie care. You know – option 1) traveling with your pet and the limitations (no cars in hot sun, “dining” in car parked hopefully under shade tree, no fancy hotels….) or option 2) hiring expensive and trustworthy pet sitters only to suffer anxiety and loneliness when you leave part of the family behind.

We lived in Seattle and loved all the area offered from beautiful scenery to unlimited activities. Dulcinea rode bikes with us and kayaked – a of her in her life jacket sitting in a washbasin strapped to the center of our kayak was in the NW Outdoor Center’s Catalog.

When my brother died suddenly and unexpectedly in 2002, I “inherited’ Robbie, his 6 yr. old Shiba Inu. OK, so we’d have a few more years of dog ownership and what a wonderful dog - a joy – funny, friendly, loved everyone. He brought Dulcinea a new lease on life. She hated being left behind when we walked Robbie – soon she was riding in her very own red wagon (with pneumatic tires for a cushioned ride - she also had 4 inches of foam to sit on to ease her arthritic joints.) Although she couldn’t walk, was almost totally blind and was deaf, she was working her nose and loved her daily outings with us. 

After my brother died, I quit my sales job in Seattle and spent a week every month in Texas with my parents. They were getting old and John’s death was hard on them. Moving to Texas with Ray and our pet family was the next step. So Ray retired from his sales job also and we moved to Midland, TX – It’s named Midland ‘cause it’s mid – land from everyplace! 350 miles to Dallas, 350 to El Paso, 350 miles to Austin/San Antonio; Shopping – Sears; Movies –  Blockbusters only; Restaurants: Cracker Barrel… need I go on?  West Texas – flat, dry, windy! My two adult children who had lived in Seattle close to us were now off and about - son, wife and child in Bozeman, MT and daughter, husband, 2 children in Dubai, UAE. Ray’s three adult children and families were in Easton, CT, Butler, NJ and Los Angeles, CA – we didn’t know how hard it would be for them to come see us in Midland. Disneyland, it’s not!

It was a tough move – I wrecked Ray’s Ranger PU – totaled it – U Haul flipped me just like that! But Guardian Angels do exist  – Robbie, me, and the two cats were not hurt at all. Ray had Dulcinea in the Penske Truck. Scared him finding me wheels up in a ditch! Plan B was to find a mover for all the stuff (none of it broke in my wreck) and for us to drive the Honda with two dogs and two cats to Texas. We made it to Midland and eight days later Dulcinea died in my arms of a stroke. She was 16. Oh man, were we sad! Even the cats missed her. Such a big void for such a little soul.

Time passed with us helping my folks and trying to make Texas our home, but it was pretty difficult. There isn’t much to see or do. We trained for the Seattle to Portland bike ride 206 miles in two days which we did summer 2005.

Ten year old Robbie died suddenly January 2006. Vet said it must have been a blown heart value. He was diabetic and had health issues since he was a puppy and the shock of his death left us stunned. Ray had just that week returned to work since retirement in Midland was a bit much for him to endure so there I was in a big empty house alone all day with no dog. It wasn’t six hrs. Of “no dog” before I was researching dog breeds and thinking about another best friend.

My first step was to define what I wanted, so I made a list: small and lap friendly, healthy breed, walker, and so the list began. Since Robbie had so many health issues and required two insulin shots daily, I really wanted a dog without problems built into the breed. Second step was to do Dog Breed Info on line which led me to the “Test” – I answered it and my list of dogs included some pretty silly choices for me: Bichon, Dachshund, …so I took the test again putting in “jogging” instead of “walking” and an entirely different list appeared including Danish/Swedish Farmdog. I’d never heard of that breed.  Oh MY! Love at first sight! The of Agerhonen’s Santa Lucia Stumperumpe appeared on screen and I had found my perfect match.

The Search.  Yes, I found the infamous Chicken Dog Web site and the little dogs looked great even with chickens sitting on them. I carried the of Agerhonen’s Santa Lucia Stumperumpe everywhere showing off my next dog. It became more obvious how rare they were - finally one search netted Kennel Little Denmark with an email address so I made my first inquiry – Subject: Requesting Info On Purchase of Puppy. It seems like days passed – I decided to email all the Danish Farmdog Club Board members and I think Kennel Flora got an email also. Finally, I got a reply from someone named Helene who said: What do you want? If you want a puppy, I’ll need to know a lot more about you. (I think she replied before her morning coffee.) Email back:  yes, I want a puppy and soon received a nice email from Helene explaining the many aspects of getting a Danish/Swedish Farmdog. I followed with a seven-page letter telling Helena everything I could think of about Ray’s and my pet history and treatment of pets. Phone calls and more emails in the days of late January. Helene said it would probably be years before I might get a puppy.

In the meantime, I was so lonely and grieving for Robbie. I found three other breeds I had some interest in – they were also rare breeds, but nothing could replace the DSF in my heart. I began to think all was lost on getting a DSF, so on Super Bowl Sunday morning I made a trip to our local Shelter and saw a little Chihuahua – Pomeranian mix puppy. She bounded into my arms and I knew she’d not spend another night at the Shelter. I arranged a co-adoption with a friend, but I knew this was going to be my puppy – and it worked out just that way. Many of you have met Gazelle.

I stayed in contact with Helene and formed a solid friendship. There just weren’t any puppies. Gazelle, the Chi-Pom mix, began to fill the void in our lives and although I never gave up on the DSF, I just figured I’d have to wait for years.

My mother died in June, 2006. My life in Midland just got a whole lot bleaker!

Then one day in August, Helene emailed: she’d given my name to someone in Connecticut whose female had 7 puppies on June 27, 2006. She was clear it was up to the dog’s owner, Bruce Feller, to select the puppies’ families and gave him only my contact info. Just as my heart was skipping a beat, I had another email: Bruce Feller said he’d heard from Helene that I might be interested in a DSF puppy. I was stunned! I could barely talk when I phoned Bruce. We talked and talked and I was going to get a Danish/Swedish Farmdog puppy! I didn’t sleep that night!

The Wait: The anticipation of bringing this little puppy into our home was overwhelming. I counted off each day. Bruce sent me s of “DOT”, her brothers and sisters and mom, Hilde. I printed them, I enlarged them, I showed them to everyone! There was an additional stroke of good luck – Bruce lives 70 miles north of Ray’s daughter in CT. Finally the puppies were ready for their new homes; I flew to NY, Dana picked me up, and on Sunday Aug. 27th 2006, I met Dot and all her family. Bruce let Hilde introduce me to her puppies – she was such a proud mother! Winther’s Dot  - #7 born in litter – She would be #1 of litter to pose on Helene’s purple chair later in the year!

I stayed a few days with Dana-Dot was just great. She loved everyone including cats and the little kids. The Fellers did a wonderful job socializing her and thank you very much, piddle pad training her. Finally it was time to head back to Texas – I picked up a stuffed toy for the trip. (She still has it – her “baby doll” and to this day I give it to her only at bed time, she grabs it and starts sucking on it, “logs” up next to me just like a litter.)

Ray picked us up at the airport and Dot met all the family – cats, friends Linda, Al and Gazelle. Again she was great – walked right into the mix. (what would you expect from a Farmdog and good rearing, eh Bruce?) Shortly after our arrival in Texas Dot, Gazelle and I took our usual long morning walk. By the time I returned home, Dot had become Dakota. I’m not sure how that happened but I looked at her and said, “You need kinda a tough girl’s name. You are not a “girly-girl” - you are rugged, independent, strong, -- you look like a Dakota.”

In October I took my 92 yr old dad on a road trip to see his niece and nephew in Denver, my son and family in Bozeman, friends in Spokane. Gazelle (1 yr old) and Dakota (4 months old) loaded up in the red truck for a 2500 mile road trip – traveling with a 92 yr old father and two puppies did have some challenges but we all did great! My dad flew from Denver to Bozeman and I drove with the girls – singing across the prairie, listening to books on tape and stopping whenever and wherever we wanted to – one stop was at Helene’s in Cheyenne! Helene, Maddy, and Kikka were wonderful hosts and the puppies were welcomed. We met others with their dogs and enjoyed a romp in the “private” dog park. This is still one of the highlights of my life - a marvelous time watching all the bouncing butts chasing around the field. Night came too soon and we had to get back on the road to Bozeman (son), Spokane (friends), Seattle (daughter). My dad flew from Seattle back to Midland and I continued with the dogs to Portland to meet Ray and move his brother to Midland.

My dad broke his hip in October, 2007 - his health and life suffered a pretty steep decline after that. He agreed to move to an Adult Family Home in Seattle, so we moved from Midland, TX back to our beloved Seattle, WA summer ‘08. We moved my dad in May and we followed with 29,000# of freight (three houses of stuff! - thank you, Helene, for the Allied Van Line referral!), Ray and I in truck pulling a 27’ travel trailer with five cats, two dogs and my crippled blind brother-in-law. My dad lived to Veteran’s Day.

More about Dakota: She has 100’s of toys – large floppy ones are the best; first the squeaker comes out, then the stuffing and then watch out: she beats the poor thing to death (killing a squirrel, maybe). We have a large backyard with squirrels running along the top of wooden fence. She has to have a toy in her mouth, shaking it about in order to frantically run out the door. Once in her frenzied moment of the race outside she almost grabbed the cat for “the toy” - he let her know – NO WAY. Ooops, she won’t do that again.

She has “cousins” of the non-Farmdog breed. My granddaughter has two German Shepard mixes, Ringo and Sadie. Through this association we have all gotten into Sled Dog Races – Gazelle and Dakota are called “trail bait” by the sled dog folks and we have to be off the trail when they harness up. Being in the forest or mountains when over 100 wolf-sized dogs are ready to run is one of the most exciting moments a dog lover can experience. I went to the Iditarod Mar. 3, ’09 with my daughter and granddaughter. Another cousin - Zoey, a Beagle - lives in Seal Beach with Ray’s daughter. Dakota is shy and it takes some time for her to warm up to people and dogs she doesn’t know, but with time she starts playing with them all.

Our main activity is walking- we do about four miles every day even when it’s raining. Ice – maybe not! Dakota is so smart and active I think I will start Agility this summer. There is a local club close to us and Ray has agreed to go so both dogs can have the fun.

Cats R Fun - Dinero hugs Dakota. Dakota doesn’t like the cats to fight. Pow! She’s up around my neck or taking cover when there is anything like a disagreement with them. I don’t cut her nails but I can imagine that would not work. The walks on concrete keep them acceptable. Baths: OK and toweling off is a blast - lots of noise, grabbing the towel and running around. She loves her old bean bag (from that road trip when she was a puppy), but the cats have claimed it in front of the fireplace. She “helps” make up the beds, too - under the covers, untucking the sheets, digging holes in blankets, tossing off pillows. She will do anything for food – keeping her at or about 17# is a struggle. Cat food, cat “cookies” YUK, worm-jerky (hot Texas sidewalks), she will eat anything – I have to watch for trouble all the time.

There are so many things I love about her: her high energy; the way she bounces when she runs; her love of water and snow; the clown and silly side of her; her focus and determination when she wants something; She won’t go away til I play with her. The way she can flat foot it into my arms when the cats scare her; no matter where I lean over, she will pounce on my back; the endless and tireless games she and Gazelle play (thank goodness for that – I could never entertain her like Gazelle does) The endless chase and other games; yes, her sleeping under the covers with me; riding shotgun in the car (Ray built a “platform” for her to sit on between the seats); the way she “dives” into water, sinks and comes up paddling to swim extremely smoothly to shore – it’s a hoot! I especially love her little, solid, warm, compact body and that tail that never stops wagging! Are you kidding: who do I greet first? Ray doesn’t stand a chance! I’ve never seen him on all 4’s jumping up as high as my head and smothering me with “kisses”. In the A.M. coffee first, cats next, then dogs - all pretty much in five minute time frame.

Life with Dakota: Happy New Year 2009 New Home in Edmonds, WA. Both Dakota and Gazelle have enriched our lives more than words can express. I don’t need to tell other Farmdog folks how deep and fertile that enrichment is- you know. Dakota is everything and much, much more than the dog I envisioned when I made my list in January 2006. And for a very extra special bonus; my friends in the Farmdog family. We don’t get a just a dog, we get a family. Sally, Anna, and Luke stopped for a vsit in September of 2009.