Sweet Baxter -- March 14, 2002 to March 15, 2016

Our home is so very quiet now.  No little barker standing at the top of the stairs welcoming us home or complaining about the wait for dinner or his need to run outside to take care of business.  .

He started his life with us at about ten weeks.  He was born March 14th and we picked him up over Memorial weekend while down visiting family in Oregon.   He captured our hearts from that very first day.  We had met his sister and realized we had found THE CUTEST PUPPY EVER!!!  Puppy Schipperke's look like miniature bear cubs before their noses grow out and while they still have only their soft undercoat. I am always irritated that I can't tell for sure which of the penta-puppies in the photo is Baxter. 

When we first moved to Snohomish County he was only a year and a half old.  Sometimes we would add a bandana to give him a little flair -- one time I pulled it up over his nose and christened him "Bandit Dog."

Schipperkes have a lot of fur so he was always happy to go for walks in the winter.  While summer hikes left him a bit worn out with the heat, with winter hikes he was still going strong when the rest of us were feeling rather frozen!

This was what he thought about the summer heat! Taken during our spectacular 2015 Summer!

 

 

Baxter was very social and originally thought every dog was his friend. He wasn't so sure about that after he almost became an hors d'oeuvres.  He was very accepting of the cats when he was a pup, but became less tolerant as he got older.  Here he is with "his own cat" Duncan. They had a rough and tumble relationships -- but at the end the cat was giving Baxter a bath.

It's obvious Baxter does not trust Duncan and is pretty wary of what might be coming!

 He loved people too and always had a fun time welcoming all the "Men's Bible Study guys" as weekly members of his pack.  He also  hoped that chocolate chip cookies would fall from the sky.  He had been known to snatch a cookie from anyone who neglected to keep theirs safe.  Here he is at the top of the stairs waiting for the entry of one of his "boys." 

He loved going to Pacific Beach and chasing gulls.  In spite of being a "Belgian Barge Dog" he didn't particularly like getting wet so generally stayed away from the surf. 

He was the perfect sized dog to have sit on your lap.  He hated being picked up and held but was fine with sitting on laps.  He much preferred his paws to be on terra-firma!

Schipperke's have annual "blowouts" and it takes a lot of brushing to get their undercoat loosened up and separated from the dog.  We laughed that we could have made another dog from all this extra fur!

We liked the "festive dog" look during the holidays but he wasn't so enthusiastic.  He hated the bells on that neck scarf and went to work on chewing all the bells so that they didn't make noise.  We finally took the bells off but still made him wear it!

He went on our neighborhood camping trip to Orcas Island and had a fun time!  We had a good time with the neighbors although our idea of camping runs more toward Comfort Inn.

When circumstances warranted the necessity of it -- he hated the "cone of shame."

A couple of years ago he had a paw infection of some sort -- don't remember details. He started out with blue "shoes" and with a cover to keep his paws dry (He didn't like the latter).  His later "shoes" were hot pink. While he didn't like the rain covers as they were slippery, he tolerated the "shoes" well because his paws were not hurting and he could take walks while he healed.

He started having seizures in 2012 but that was controlled by medication.  He was getting a bit arthritic the last few years, but that just slowed him down a bit.  It was the lump on his shoulder diagnosed as cancer that ultimately was his undoing.  As he declined he remained patient, rarely whined or complained and kept his dignity to the very end.  On his last day he just laid in our arms, mostly mine. 

We call our sweet Baxter the world's best dog because he was always amiable, good tempered and tolerant of all the pick-ups, hugs and snuggles that he got on many occasions.  He was always ready for a good walk and loved when the Seahawks played -- as he was a fan of the other dogs who attended the games and of the occasional snack that dropped from the sky!  His devotion to his family and family friends was primary in his short but well-lived life.  He loved our teacher friend who was the best dog-sitter one could hope for and we always knew he was in good hands when we left town.  He adored me and spent many hours lying beside my desk while I worked -- giver of  unmerited (by me)  trust and devotion. 

Good bye my sweet little friend.  I hope that all dogs DO go to heaven and that my late sister Venca was able to meet you and escort you to Jordan's other side.  Here you were at Pacific Beach in 2010.  two years later she passed on.  May your journey be peaceful and joyful as you follow her into the light.  

Schipperke Blow Out

 Baxter, the World's Best Dog, was starting to look reddish again late this winter and the male half of the dog owners decided it was time to give him his annual massive brushing.  He has little brushes every now and then but at least once a year a Schipperke has a "blow out" of the under coat and it is amazing how much fur can be pulled off the dog without him looking at all different (except losing that redding tinge to his fur that appears as the undercoat loosens and works its way out).  Well, they went off to watch a TV show and brush and the end result was nearly enough fur for another dog.  The birds will like it as we put dog fut out for them to use in their nests in the spring.  Such a cumpfy little bed for a newly hatched bird!

 We told Baxter following this that he was "half the dog he used to be" but he just interpreted that as time to get a treat or something for putting up with all that brushing!

He doesn't look diminished at all! 

THE WORLD'S BEST DOG

This morning I sat in the recliner by the window with the world’s best dog on my lap. Baxter is just four years old, born in March and picked up by us on Memorial Weekend four years ago. What a cute little puppy he was! Schipperke pups look like small bear cubs and we have no idea, in the photo of the little quintuplets provided by the breeder, which of the pups is Baxter.

He’s my dog. He’s really the family dog and is devoted to and protective of everyone. But he’s my dog because I’m “mom.” When the other’s lament that he isn’t most devoted to them, I remind them that when he was a little puppy, who was the one person who would crawl out of bed at 3:00 am to take him outside when he was miserable and needed to piddle? Yup, me. Who made sure he got every meal? Yup, me. Everyone played with him and he adores them all, but since I met all those puppy needs day and night after day and night, well, he’s bonded to me in his sweet little doggy mind.

He’s so cute. If I give him a greenie and then leave the house, he usually won’t eat the greenie until I’m back home; he waits for my return. He barks with joy whenever I come home and shakes with delight that his fears of abandonment were unfounded. He’s a great little early warning system and it is unlikely that we will be snuck up on by a person with evil intent. One night he barked at 3:00 am and we grumpily told him to be quiet and the next morning I had an email from a neighbor asking why the police were in front of our house at 3:00 am! What??? We had police at our house at 3:00 am? Turned out they had chased a stolen truck into our cul-de-sac and the culprits, discovering there was no place to go, abandoned the truck in front of our house and took off through a nearby yard without a fence in the front. By the time we knew about it, the truck was long gone and the only evidence that remained were the black tire marks showing exactly where the driver was when he realized there was no exit!

Schipperkes are also called Belgian barge bogs because they were apparently bred to be ratters on barges. Baxter has proven his breeding because he’s done in a couple of rats in the back yard over the past few months. The reason we have an occasional rat come through is because we also have three pigeons in a coop and they are not very neat eaters. There are always leftover seeds on the ground under the coop and the rats that live under the neighbors shed have been seen coming under the fence to have a snack. Baxter has turned some of their excursions into the last meal before their execution! We do not mourn the rats!

Baxter has a great personality, thinks every dog is his friend -- although he’s been surprised a few times and has moderated his enthusiasm. He is very protective of me. Just let husband or kids “pick on” mom and voila, there he is nipping at their ankles and letting them know that this is not appropriate behavior.

He is a complete affection sponge and adores being petted by “dad” who is the world’s best dog petter. He love chasing balls, but won’t let go so you have to have two in order to get him to chase more than once. He loves going for walks and his favorite phrase is “go with?” which means he’s invited along in the car. At those words, he runs in circles and barks for joy! He loves to sleep on the foot of the bed and on a cold winter night I enjoy his little 104 degree heater by my feet. Best of all, he sits next to me on the recliner and offers his furry little back as a sensory treat. When I’m happy he is happy along with me and when I’m sad he licks my tears. Lots of people have very nice dogs, but I have the World’s Best Dog!