Thursday, August 26, 2010

National Dog Day! My little Chihuahua: Hope!

Guess what today it...
Have  you guessed yet?
Do you know?

National Dog Day!

Some of you have read through my interviews and by now many of you probably know I have a small white Chihuahua named Winter Hope. Hope for short. I figured what better day to do a post dedicated to my little helper! Here she is, my confidant, my companion and my writer's assistant (or sometimes distraction) 
Hope!


Yes, she is wearing shirts in these particular pictures. I will admit I was against dressing up dogs until I found out more about chihuahuas and why in cold weather climates it can be needed or they get very sick. These are just her fun shirts we let her choose to put on or not in summer. We just happened to be taking pictures on two days she decided to have them on last summer. 

She LOVES to run as fast as she can around the garden, tortillas, strawberries, anything fluffy she can find a place to lay down on including people, she will sit next to my desk until I pull out my drawer (I finally keep it empty and just have her stuff in there normally) so that she can hop up and sit next to me when I write, she adores anything pink even if I have no idea how she can tell if it is pink or not and has a remarkable amount of nicknames including Chew (Chew-bark-a) and Bumble Bee because when she growls while playing... it really does sound like bumble bee buzzing.

She is my writers companion and as I write she sits up on my shoulders peeking over to see how I am doing. She has even been known to lick my face if I stop typing for any amount of time to keep me going and motivated! 

Happy national dogs day to my wonderful little girl, Hope!

Sincerely,
Emma Michaels

16 comments:

  1. Hope is sooo cute! I understand your love for your Chihuahua. I have a long haired chihuahua myself and he definitely my baby :) You can check him out here:
    http://romancebookjunkies.blogspot.com/2010/08/my-baby-boy.html

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  2. Did you name her Winter because she's as white as snow?

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  3. Actually, I probably should add the story of why she is named "Winter Hope". She was born in December and was so small that no one really thought she would survive, she was only a few weeks old but her mother could be very vicious and with all of the puppies sometimes there are smaller ones who don't have a chance. The breeder didn't know what to do and her daughter knew my birthday was coming up and I had always wanted a dog but had never been allowed to get one. She was scared to approach me because she didn't know if the puppy would make it so asked my best friend, who of course took all of about 2 seconds to turn around and ask me herself if it was a good idea, knowing I was a sucker for anything that I know will be hard to do but worth all the effort (and a sucker for animals in general). Only a few weeks later I had her at the vet, getting everything ready so that I could set her up and try to get her as healthy as possible on my own and at home, no matter what anyone said (which ended up including the vet). That was when I named her "Winter Hope". She came to me in a time when I needed Hope and so did she. It was something that tied us together and she was a winter baby who they weren't sure would make it through the colder weather. After a lot of extremely small bottles and hours of feeding everyday, lots of exercise and so much more now even some breeders are jealous of my little girls perfect health and physique! She really pulled through and has been making every day I since just a little bit brighter with her by my side.

    Sincerely,
    Emma Michaels

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  4. How sweet! My dog is a chihuahua mix with a little Jack Russell. They are so smart, aren't they? Although my little girl hates to be alone. Maybe soon I'll be able to stay home with her every day and write!

    happy Dog Day to you and HOPE!

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  5. What a cutie! My two are HUGE in comparison at 35kg each.

    http://damselinadirtydress.blogspot.com

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  6. Ohhh, what a sweetie. I love how she licks your face so you'll keep writing. I've often wondered how animals know, but they do. And how she came to be called Winter Hope is a beautiful story, perhaps a December blog when winter hope has so many meanings??

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  7. Re: Kittie Howard: That is a great idea! I am definitely going to have to put that down on my calender. I can do a post on her birthday about her story and how much she means to me!!!

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  8. I had no idea that it was national dog day! I have four dogs, no wonder they were being so needy this morning! They must be wanting extra treats! I have never had such a small dog - my smallest is an Australian Shepherd, although he was the runt and at 10 only weighs 43 pounds. His story to is great! I had gone to a breeder hoping to find a puppy for my daughter and after 2 hours of playing with the pups I had finally made my decision. The whole time I was there, one puppy hid most of the time and only came close once, the breeder said that particular pup never went to anyone and they had named him Spencer as they were sure they would never home him. Once I made my choice for my daughter, as I was telling the breeder which pup I would be buying - the shy one (Spencer) came running out from under their deck and sat on my foot with him chest pressed against my shin. I looked down and told the woman I would take both the one I had chosen and the one on my shoe. Like I said, he is ten now and although we have three others, he still holds a special spot in all our hearts.

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  9. Re: Beverly: Awwww!!!! That is SO CUTE! My fiance had an aussie and absolutely adored him. Unfortunately age gets to everyone but his story is for another day. That is such a wonderful story!!! I am so happy that he did find such a wonderful home!

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  10. Emma, Winter Hope is beautiful but then you know that already!!!!

    It was a lucky day for the both of you when she became your companion and now that all the stress and strain of those early days are just memories the joy you find in her and the love she receives from you is worth every moment of time it took to get her healthy and happy!

    My Little Man's Favorite Photos are on my blog if you want to see my Chihuahua Nikki

    jackie ^_^

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  11. What a cutie! My dogs (Italian Greyhounds) have to wear sweaters, too. Even in the FL heat they like to bundle up under blankets. They're weird. And adorable. I didn't do a post on them today, but I've featured them on my blog before!
    http://seeheatherwrite.blogspot.com/2010/05/are-you-evie-or-millie.html
    and
    http://seeheatherwrite.blogspot.com/2009/11/my-muses.html

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  12. precious dog! And I was so wondering why she was named Winter Hope, so thank you for telling her story!! I <3 Dogs!!

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  13. She's sure a cutie!
    I once fostered a tea cup chihuahua named Shrimpy, for about six months. I had a real hard time giving her up. It was my first experience with chihuahuas, I've liked them ever since.

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  14. Sweet little doggie, I hope he will live happily with you! Sometimes you have to dress these cuties, they look so vulnerable! My yorkshire also wears some garments in winter.

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  15. That is the most adorable thing EVER! I have a chichi too and I love it more than just about anything. They really are excellent companions, despite what people say. Mine likes to ride on our shoulders and look out the window when we're driving lol. That's so sweet that she licks your cheek! This made my day =)

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