Our Christmas Puppy

We found our dog Oreo, many years ago, on January 8th. She was abandoned on a busy downtown street with gum in her fur and looked quite a mess. We took her to the vet, called radio stations and tried to return her to her owners.

The kindly vet let us know that abandoned Christmas puppies were not uncommon. This dog, who was probably ten weeks old when we found her, was likely exactly that... someone's discarded Christmas gift. Puppies, though adorable, are a lot of work and expense. Often they are not a gift, but a burden to the recipient.

We toughed it out at our house with this crying, chewing, black and white puppy for a couple nights, but were absolutely relieved when no one ever called to claim the dog. So, she was ours. We named her Oreo and have never looked back.

Almost a full year later, we began to decorate the house for Christmas and put up a tree. This sent Oreo into a crazy panic. She peed on the floor, cried and whined and was just beside herself. That was all the evidence we needed, the vet was right, she HAD to have been a Christmas puppy.  So, the tree came down just as fast as it went up and we did what we could to minimize her distress.

As years passed, she got more and more used to Christmas, though she is always noticeably anxious. Every year, I look into her old "puppy" eyes and tell her that we love her and are not going to throw her away with the Christmas tree. I reminder her of all the years we've been together and that she has a permanent home. She likes Christmas with the kids. She's right in the middle of things when it's time to open gifts. But she just doesn't seem to let her guard down.

I can definitely say her favourite part of Christmas is the shortbread cookies I bake. There is nothing else that she gets assertive over. (I can't say aggressive. She's the most passive dog ever.) But she will literally jump up into your lap and use her paw on your arm to stop you from eating a shortbread cookie. Then she will snatch it from your hand and be gone.  Gingerbread, chocolate chip.... she could care less. But shortbread, she will leap and snatch. She loves them! She just goes crazy wagging her tail when she's eating a shortbread cookie.

Fast forward to this year. We put up the tree last week and for the first time ever, she lay down on the tree skirt and had a nap. I could hardly believe my eyes. After all these years she's decided she's comfortable and secure enough to lie under the tree. Wow. Old dogs... you just never know.