How they got here: Part II, Bofa

He was absolutely perfect from the first moment I met him and he hasn’t changed since. Blurring speedily out in front of his pack he was eager to be first to smell everything that could be sniffed. He was the only tri-colour in the pack, the others were black and white.

His parents were beautiful and cool and aloof and wise to the ways of long grass and duck ponds.

A day after the first ‘viewing’ I could not contain myself any longer, I was missing a puppy I hardly knew. I phoned the breeder and asked if she could send me a photo. He was a big guy at 12 weeks. Well I thought he was. He was only my second Basset so I had no Basset proportion sense then.

The Dude at 12 weeks

I was alone this time for the pickup but better prepared, I had a hammock to cover the backseat that prevented anything from climbing over to the front seats. All I could see in the rear-view mirror was the little knobby on his head.

He complained bitterly during the 1 hour drive and nothing I told him would satisfy him. He started out with a snack which was supposed to keep him busy but he finished it off in 5 minutes. I could not speak Basset yet, but today I know that he kept on asking ‘Are we there yet? When are we gonna be there? Where are we going?’ Over and over.

When I let him out at his new home the first thing he did was to run over to a sandpit where we buried bones. He was sniffing and digging unaware of his new sister staring at him with a ‘WTF’ expression on her face. She had never seen another Basset smaller that herself. She tried unsuccessfully to ignore him.

It was as if he never noticed that he had another family. He was settled even before he settled in. Strange kid.

About Teenager size

Bofa trained me within a week. The only trick he could not teach me was the ‘allow me on your bed and OUR furniture’ command. I refused with dogged Basset determination.

Tricks he did manage to teach me were :

• -      If I groan at sleep time you must rub my belly for a while.
• -      When I complain softly you must come and move the sleeping Nougat away from me before she bites me.
• -      When I bark at you after you have scolded me take it as a sign that I don’t care about what you’re saying.
• -      You waste your breath calling me when I’m busy.
• -      You will put nice tasty stuff on top of the dry food if you expect me to eat it.
• -      You waste your time if you ever think that I’m not going to shriek like a girl when the vet touches me. He has cold hands and I hate him.
• -      You will allow me to sniff butts even if it belongs to a Great Dane.
• -      You will not be paranoid about my independent nature.
• -      I am wickedly cute. You will call me Mr. Handsome. 

Mr. Handsome