The Legacy

I adopted Penny ten years ago this month. She was used for breeding for the first five years of her life, because of her beautiful face. I got her from what were considered to be well regarded breeders. They are featured in a book I have about the Pekingese breed. Penny's full name was Sunsalve Secret Liaison, and her papers show one generation of inbreeding! When she came to me, she was a total wreck. She had never had medical care of any kind. There was a build up of pigment on her eyes from being kept in a dirty environment (a crate in a sheep barn with 50+ other dogs) that had left her blind. I briefly considered taking her back to the breeders because I thought she would not adjust to a different living space with her blindness. I was wrong about that. Blind dogs can actually adapt quite well. Gidget ended up blind in the last years of her life and adjusted through two changes of residence with me. I took Penny to an opthamologist to see if there was any treatment before I made my decision, and the treatment was--eye drops! Her sight was restored, not 100%, but good enough that she could find her way around better. This is the best picture I have of Penny. You can't tell from this, but her little body is jammed up against the door, she's so determined to get in the house. Pekingese can tend to be one owner pets, and Penny was mine. When we were first dating again, the Man came to take care of her once and was bit a few times trying to get her outside. When I called to check, Penny was barking at the Man the entire time they were alone together! Penny was never socialized during the first years of her life, and she became a pet for me, but never really fully adjusted. I think that Penny never really forgave me for bringing Gidget home, but I was told by others that they would be caught snuggling with each other when I was not around. Penny's signature color was green, and I had an element of green in each sweater I knit for her. The sweater here was made for sale, in discontinued Annabel Fox Aran for the body, and Lamb's Pride for the bands and trim. This is the photo that became the masthead for the web site. I still love to look at it.