tuesday's dachshund loves to run

Even in back his jiggly puff days, Baxter had and still has the need for speed. When he runs, all four legs furiously a blur, it's hard to remember that he's also the sleepy sun bake-a-holic that can barely be roused for his midday meal. When he runs, he is a rocket and nothing can stop him, not even his own legs.

Baxter's rockets betrayed him only once, during a game of chase at the dog park one fateful fall day last year. Full of confidence and loving his bigger than everybody else in the little dog park status, Baxter started a game of chase with his new buddy Murky the Yorkie. Soon, the duo were tearing around at maximum speed with Baxter in the lead and Murky a distant second. Baxter turned his head to see what was going on behind him when SMACK!! He collided into Murky's owner's legs and caused a doggie pileup. Baxter. Murky. Derailed doggies. From Baxter's perspective, he never saw the human legs, never knew that they were the reason he stopped so suddenly. With his head turned, he only saw Murky coming at him, full force, and piling right into him and packing a wallop.

Baxter ran to us almost instantaneously, tail between his legs, aroo-aroo-arooing all the way. Our rest of the time at the park that day was spent with a humbled Baxter very much underfoot, fearful of tiny Murky, the dog that now he most certainly felt was the mightiest dog on earth.

It took a couple of subsequent visits before Baxter forgot about the Mighty Murky and put the rocket boosters back on again. Nowadays his rockets propel him in his never ending quest for rabbits and squirrels, or for being chased by confirmed puppies who aren't mighty dogs in disguise. He runs when he is called by any one of his numerous names, coming to a screeching halt just barely in time before he hits into whatever is nearby. Sometimes, late in the evening, he'll get a twinkle in his eye and a toy in his mouth, and tear around the house, as if to remind us that life's too short to be wasting it glued to the television. We do our best to keep our little rocket in check, carrying him up and down stairs, discouraging him from running on slippery hard floors, but he is Tuesday's Dachshund, and tuesday's dachshund loves to run.