[Dailydrool] Why we choose the breeds we do

[Pamela McQuade]

I loved this article, and I will bet we have, on the Drool, some interesting stories of how people ended up with bassets. So I thought I'd tell my own.
 
We were caring for and living with my dad, who could no longer live on his own. Dad made a comment about wanting a dog, so I thought it might be a good idea. A dog would give him an interest in life. So we looked about and finally got a basset, because when I was young, he had a picture of a very sad basset in his office and expressed interest in having a basset someday. Naive people that we were, we never went through the "will this breed be perfect for our home?" routine. We just happened on the perfect one.
 
So it was that Lady Jane walked into our lives. She was the ideal hound for us. Since we are not overly energetic, it was good she didn't require twenty-mile walks each day--though she did love walking. She liked to cuddle on the couch with my dad. And she adored my husband. When my dad became very ill indeed, Jane and Drew became inseparable. 
 
Jane was so perfect that we ended up getting involved with rescue and sharing our lives with three hounds. Belvedere, our first foster, adored me, and Jane adored him, so of course he stayed. Fosters came and went until the senior Alexis Thefairyprincess came and never left. We adopted her after a year and a half, and we were glad to have her. Abner filled her place in the house, when we lost her to lung cancer, but even his Texas-muffin-sized paws never filled her pawprints. But we loved Abs for himself, despite his aggression issues. When the basset numbers dipped down again, after we lost Abner and Belvedere this summer, we took in two fosters, who don't look as if they are going anywhere soon. (Do you think Tri-State has our number yet? Give the McQuades a hound, and it's unlikely to go any further.)
 
Today we are well-trained basset people. Dexter the soon-to-be-adopted foster takes me for walks that are good for weight control. Holly and Dex between them make sure my hands are never missing a basset body to rub--or more likely two at a time. And Lady Jane, who started this all, is still going strong at age fourteen. We can't even imagine losing her. She started it all, and we are so glad she did.
Pam, food slave to the Dashing Bassets