Nicely played dear husband!

And we all know that heading to that napping spot is EXACTLY what they do. Fenway crawls completely under the blankets on the bed to get warm and Wembley pushes the comforter up into a lump against Fenway and curls himself into a ball. They can stay that way for hours on end….

Quite a handsome boy if I do say so myself. And while Wembley is the God of Being-a-Puppy-Your-Whole-Entire-Life, all exuberance and merriment, Fenway is much more pensive and emo. His ability to pout and look sad and dejected when he knows that we are leaving the house is Oscar-quality. Those big brown eyes can break your heart….

Yes, as a matter of fact, he is named after the stadium. Serious soccer, excuse me, football, fans around here. And the funniest thing about our little Wembley…or Wembelly as he is affectionately known…is that he is the most easy-going, happiest, most even-tempered dog we have ever had. I was going to say sweetest, but Satchmo wins that prize.

Okay that made me lol…that is going to be one ugly-ass tattoo. I think a better idea would be to start at his shoulder and do a new logo all the way down his arm with each new team. Kind of an “I-never-was-an-NFL-caliber-quarterback-no-matter-how-much-my-God-wanted-it” sleeve. Somehow I think he’ll only get a half-sleeve out of it before the gig is up.

This is awesome…thank you! Love the pup with the football and have always loved the reading bassets. Picking may be tougher than I thought!

I have, on several occasions, been given a card with that image on it. And darling as it is, as tattoos go, infinitely more painful than the simple line drawing that is the classic Thurber pup. The L&T Casey has an amazing piece on her ribs that took a total of 6 hours to finish. My pain tolerance is significantly less…2 hours is my limit. So, simple it is…Tbogg suggested colorizing the butterfly.

And I am now in search of a Thurber basset for my next tattoo…suggestions are welcome. Lesley’s link is the front-runner.

It makes me CRAZY when I see people with their dogs off leash. I have always been much more comfortable with our dogs in harnesses being that they are stubborn and obnoxious and dragging them around by their necks is less than desirable. And let’s face it…dogs are kind of dumb where cars are concerned. Case in point…I took W out last night after dinner because no, we do not have a yard, and as he was searching the patch of grass between sidewalk and street for the appropriate place to poo, an SUV began to pull in to park. W’s head was about a foot into the gutter and even with a large, noisy, potentially deadly vehicle bearing down on him, he refused to budge. He had squatted and was not about the give any ground. The driver kindly waited until W was finished and when he got out of the car I apologized for the wait and said that W obviously did not have a good grasp of the car vs. dog equation and his likely place on the losing end of it. He laughed and went on his way. Even really smart, well trained, easy-going, sweet, angelic dogs need to be on a leash. Bassets even more so.

I think this pants thing needs some clarification. Tbogg does not wear LONG pants. He is a shorts and tshirt kind of guy and wanted to wear shorts to our wedding ohhh so many years ago…I should have let him. And let me just say that he survived this particular pants ordeal just as he has survived many other pants ordeals over the last 30 years. Mitt would be proud as he has been spotted in the ‘hood wearing high-waisted “mom” jeans with pressed creases. I’m gonna guess he didn’t press those creases himself. Ugh…

Hugs and understanding from Casa Tbogg. He will be in good company at the Rainbow Bridge with Satch and Becks…they are pretty seasoned at greeting Tbogg dogs. And remember that our buddies don’t remember how long they lived, only how well they were loved.

As usual, our little community here knows exactly what to say at exactly the right time. Thank you all for taking a few moments to wish me a Happy Happy and yes…now we all know who set the L&T Casey on the road to corruption. But we had a helluva time! (Luckily there are no pictures from the parties in Hawaii!)

There is not a better place to grieve for Sam than here with this wonderful group. We all know the pain of losing a beloved friend and the sadness when the bed is too big. Be assured that Satch and Becks were right there at the Rainbow Bridge to show Sam the ropes and he will be there waiting for you just as they will be waiting for us. Extra hugs and cuddles on this end for our boys in Sam’s honor.

One of our vets is getting an additional Board certification so because Fenway is her favorite patient (her words, not mine) and because he has this propensity for presenting with unsual and somewhat rare (the granulomas are generally seen only in cats, Huskies and King Charles Spaniels) conditions, he makes a perfect case study. And funny you should mention the allergy angle…he will be going on hypoallergenic food for a 12 week trial to see if that will fix the mouth issues instead of going back on steroids. I personally do think that he has a compromised immune system and I firmly believe it is a direct result of whatever nastiness it was that took Beckham from us. If we find out the answer to that mystery, AND get Fenway back to normal, whatever that is, the study will be a great success! And Fenway will be published!!! Bonus!!!

Yes, they are lovely. And willfull and smelly and needy and stubborn and demanding and barky and messy and big bed hogs. Last night…10:30pm take both dogs out,11:30pm take Wembley out, 2:30am go next door and tell the Danish boys and friends to STFU, 3:00am take Wembley out since the Danish boys woke him up, 5:45am take both dogs out, 7:30am go to work. And I get to go home and do it all again tonight. Good thing I love them right???

Give Angus a hug for me…he has my second favorite ears in the entire dog-world!

Yes, they are spoiled…just not spoiled rotten!

I would also like to reach through the screen and hug and pet Arthur. He is darling and has the bestest little ears for scritching!

That is actually somewhat of an optical illusion. Wembley’s ears are only slightly bigger than Fenway’s but his head is WAYYYYYYY smaller. When we brought Fenway home he always looked like he should have toppled over forward because his head was so big, and while the proportions are better now, he still has a really big head for a basset. Wembley on the other hand, has a very small head, jabba-sized body, massive dinosaur feet and ears on the larger-than-average-for-a-basset size. And yes, Wembley is still growing into all his parts!

As per usual, our internet family has been there for us, two-legged and four-legged alike, in our time of need. As you all have found a place in your hearts for our family, please know that you are appreciated and loved in return. As Tom said earlier, it is amazing that a small blog with pictures of bassets has created a place of such warmth and support…oh and snark too, also. Thank you, more than I can ever convey in words. I will simply send a big hug to you all and hope that you know.

As for little Wembley, he’s being such a trooper. He misses playing with his Big Dog but he has been very good and patient with all the drama. Fenway is at the vet again today getting fluids to get him through the weekend, the antibiotics seem to have the fever under control and the pain meds are doing their job too. He’s a strong young dog and while we are not out of the woods, we’re cetainly on the right path. Now if we can all get 1 or 2 good nights of sleep, we will be headed in the right direction.

Keep sending those positive thoughts and white light and yes, from a confirmed agnostic, even prayers to whatever entity you see fit. I firmly believe that they will help Fenway pull through. And even if he can’t feel the love directly…we will be sure to pass it along. Thank you all!!