The Tillminator

In November 2012, we had our 13yo Yorkie Max put down.  He was blind and feeble, and had taken a fall that day, and I ultimately made the decision that it was time.  That was the only time I have ever seen my husband, Matt, cry.  

Max was an awesome dog, a 15lb typical Yorkie who thought he was a Rottweiler.  He'd chased a herd of deer out of our yard, was a Might Chipmunk Killer, and just the sweetest thing.  He was my first dog, and I couldn't have asked for a better introduction into the World of Dogs.

A few months went by and I was in serious dog withdraw.  In March I Shanghaied Matt to a local Tractor Supply Store where I knew they were having an adoption event.  We needed chicken feed and it seemed like a good idea.  This is who we met there:

Caution!  Will Double in Size in 2-4 Months

They had Tillman listed as a Dachshund mix, and you can see why with the long body and markings.  We looked at a few puppies (Matt wanted to get a puppy and I wanted to get a rescue) and decided that we were interested in this little guy.  I filled out an application, we went through all the hoops, had a meet-and-greet with Tillman, and decided to take him home.

Tillman was born in Greenville, SC, and was rescued by the group who specializes in getting dogs out of high-kill shelters in the south and bringing them north.  He was born November 2012....the same month we had Max put down.  When we rescued him, he was 4 months old.  We did puppy basic training at a dog training facility right near our house, and that went.....ok.  Hounds are notoriously stubborn.

In June, Tillman was playing with a larger dog at a kennel while I had an outpatient procedure, and the little tyke broke his front left leg.  It was bad, he needed surgery which cost us $800,000 and Matthew's right kidney.  Kidding.  He has 5 pins in his leg now, and had to wear a cast for 4 weeks.

If you experience an erection lasting longer than 4 hours, seek medical attention.

It.  Didn't.  Slow.  Him.  Down.  One.  Bit.

In fact, if you didn't get out of the way fast enough he would stomp on your toes with his stump.  Hard.  It was a difficult 4 weeks.  He was used to sleeping with us by then, but we couldn't have him up on the bed for fear of him falling or trying to jump off, so we put an exercise pen (X Pen) in the bedroom with his bed in it.  We tried to put him downstairs but he would whine and bark, so we had to put it in the bedroom.  Then he was fine.  

I'm wearing my red today.

Then, we had to cart the damn thing downstairs into the kitchen so we could set it up there while we were at work.  I had to come home at lunch to let him outside and take the cone off his head so he could eat and drink.

Every damn day.  

Tillman is a hoarder.  We will give him something bigger than he can crunch and swallow, and he will wander around the house for 20 minutes looking for a place to bury it.  Most often it is in the laundry.  

Is it secret?  Is it safe?

We have decided to just call him a "hound mix" because we have no idea what all is in there.  Maybe beagle, dachshund, coonhound, lab, and/or bassett.  He has a black spotted tongue, extra floppy mouth skin, webbed paws, and loves the water.

Hey guys!  Look what I did with the ball!

He is a ham, he makes us laugh.  He likes to play ball, loves to look out the window at what is going on, and he is a snuggler.  Loves to be on your lap or beside you.  He cuddles with me almost every night, all night.  I don't mind this.  Maybe it is in my DNA, as humans have been living and sleeping with dogs for millenia.

This really does NOT look comfortable...for either of them, really.

After he healed up from his broken leg, we took him to an additional 8-week training.  He did ok, more of the stubborn coming out.  We manage.  He's not good on a leash because he likes to pull, but we got a pinch collar for him and that works well.  He holds his leg at a funny angle, and when he first gets up from sleeping he has a limp.  We're giving him a supplement from Only Natural Pets for that and his immune system.  It seems to be helping, but he'll have these problems for the rest of his life.

OMG, SNOW!

But it does not slow him down one bit.  I've been taking him running once a week, and he's fine with that.  He's a high energy dog and that's forcing us to be more high energy, too.

In fact, it's snowing again today, and I will be forced to take the little tyke out for a run/romp in the snow!

I LOVE SNOW!!!!!