At the time we had 4 cats, and if you want to know what disrupting a household is like – just throw a Vizsla into this mix – Luckily Tuck always loved the cats, only one of them actually came to love Tuck though, but I can’t blame them for that – they’re just stupid cats after all.

Tucker was always willing to learn, and fit right into our life perfectly – we took him everywhere that we could, and he learned to be a big part of things without getting in the way.  To this day we still have people that tell us that he was their favorite dog ever – and some of them have dogs in their lives at the time. Tuck always loved all of our friends and in return they loved him too.

Tucker was the most sensitive soul I ever knew, if Nancy and I raised our voices he would get upset, start to shake and eventually would leave the room to hide out, of course this made it difficult to watch sports, since we would be yelling at the game and suddenly notice that Tucker wasn’t in the room with us, and we would have to go find where he was hiding away from our yelling. The easy thing was that we always knew if there was a problem, because Tuck would never be out of the room that we were in – so, no Tuck, and you knew something was up.

This sensitivity really came into play whenever one of us was hurting, Tucker would become the biggest cuddle monster and would go out of his way to be there for us.  When Nancy went through breast cancer Tucker spent many a day wrapped around her making sure she was OK.  He would walk up and put his nose on your nose and just look into your face, an incredible boy to say the least.

We’ve had our own business for quite a while now, which makes it easy to bring our boys with us, Tucker was always the star of the show… We had clients that we would call to confirm a meeting and they would ask if we were bringing Tucker with us, and would make sure to let us know that if Tucker wasn’t coming, there really wasn’t any reason to meet at that time, and we could wait until Tucker could be present.  The best part is that they would have a chair at the meeting table for Tucker so that he could crawl up in the chair and crash out while we conducted our meeting.

The memories stream back quickly, too quickly at times as they bring tears with them.  The time he was brain-cramping and hit his leg on a hidden rock – we thought he had broken it – he just stood there holding it up and crying for us… The time he was doing his brush surfing (hopping through the deep brush so he could see above it) and we watched him jump up and then disappear as he went over the edge of a ravine and landed in the creek about 15 feet below, we had to hang over the edge and pull his wet butt back up to the trail… Coming home one time after leaving him inside for about 12 hours (we got stuck somewhere) and finding a little bit of pee tinkled throughout the house as Tucker ran from the back door, to the kitchen door, to the front door, up the stairs – everywhere, trying to find any way out, finally ending up in the upstairs bathroom where he finally releaved himself on the tile (We felt so bad for that one, he tried so hard to find a way out!!!)…

I think of all of the nicknames we had for our guy, I could go on about the Tucker forever, but we have to save those for another time.

Tonight I will raise a toast (and please, everyone reading this, do the same) to the dog that really thought he was human, to the dog that taught us about true commitment and love, to the one and only “T”…

These Pics (except the one with Nancy) were all taken the last morning that we had Tucker, they are tough to see at times, everything comes flying back – but they are the last ones we got and will always show that even on his last day he was the most gentle soul possible.

Oliver is a 1.5 year old that we adopted from SoCal Vizsla Rescue, He is a beautiful, extremely thin, very active, sweet young Vizsla that we will gladly welcome into his “Forever Home”.

Last night was his first night with us… What a sweet boy, he played long and hard with all of the toys that he could find, and then when we sat down to dinner, he curled up on the sofa and went to sleep.

At bed time, it took just a few to get him to calm down, but then he curled up next to Bodi, put his head on Bodi’s butt and went to sleep.

He definitely has some separation anxiety, but then it has only been 1 day and he is just getting used to the new digs. He tends to whine when left by himself, whether in the bedroom, or when left alone in the house, but seems to be much better when Bodi is nearby.

Couldn’t be happier, Nancy, Bodi, Oliver and I look forward to many more posts on this new subject, and new member of our family.

This was our first real “Holiday” with Bodi, and consequently, our first real “Holiday” without the Tuckster in a long time.

Bodi was great, primed him for all the kids that were going to show up, waited, and waited, and no kids came by our neighborhood at all. So we enjoyed our little Halloween decorations, and enjoyed our boy – next year, we dress him up and go out for the hunt – all little kids BEWARE!!!

Bodi hard at work proving once and for all that he can crash out just as fully as Tucker could, I’m in the chair editing a video for a client, while this bum-of-a-dog is crashed out, snoring, and doing those cute little Vizsla kicks while he chases Squirrels in his dreamy-dream land.

Just something to set the tone for the weekend!!!

One of the things that we learned about Vizsla’s is something that we call “Brain Cramps”. I’m sure that every “V” owner will attest to this little bit of craziness.

When you are playing with your pup, and all of the sudden all hell breaks loose, the back hips drop near to the ground, the lips curl back, the ears start to flop all over the place, and time stands still… for you, for your Vizsla though, time has taken on a new meaning, they are moving as fast as they can, running like the wind, their shoulders seem to touch the ground as they negotiate a tight turn, they are growling and barking, and many times the slobber is thrown across the bridge of their nose.

Of course, we are egging them on, growling back at them, laughing as hard as they are playing, throwing our arms in the air just to see how much more insane they can become.  As they run at us,we run back at them, just to keep the game going.  I’m sure most other people must view us, the owners, as the crazy ones, as we “scare” our little dogs, but we know better, we are in Vizsla heaven, we are in the midst of the hunt with them, we are at one with our beasts.

I dare any Vizsla owner to deny that they have been here, I dare any Vizsla owner to say that they haven’t felt this.

With our beloved Tucker we also had a little thing that we called “Sand Dancing”.  We were treated to this one evening while walking Tuck near the playground at the school near us (Of course, this was before the schools around here were put into perpetual lockdown, before the “No Dogs Allowed” signs popped up, when they were still “public” schools).  As Nancy and I walked near the sandbox, Tucker dove in, and started dancing, he would dig a little, then spin around , throw all four paws out, get his face near the sand, and spin around, kicking sand in the air, then start all over again.  Nancy and I were loving it, and we would point him to sand anytime we were near it just to enjoy his complete happiness and joy with this soft, sandy treat.

These pictures were taken a few years ago when we took Tucker to the Beach Cruisers Car Show in Huntington Beach (Car lovers should circle this one on the calendar, great show), we split off from the show and went down to the beaches edge. Of course, Tucker couldn’t resist the sand and started Sand Dancing, people were staring and pointing, and we were loving it. Every once in a while Tucker would take a break, stand at the walls edge and check everybody and everything out, but his true love was the sand… and for a little while he was “The Lord Of The Dance”, and he was dirty, and he was sandy, and he was out of breath, and he was drooling… and best of all, he was Tucker.

Bodi is a master of “Brain Cramping”, he does it at the park, in the hills, in the backyard, Christ, he does it in the house (as Tucker did before him). He hasn’t picked up on the Sand Dancing yet, at least not in front of us, but we won’t hold it against him, and we’ll just egg him on a little bit everytime we get in the sand, just in case he has a bit of the dance in him.

These pictures bring back many memories, many great thoughts, and a bit of tears, but I am so thankful that we still have them as they trigger all of the emotions, good and bad, and for that we are blessed.

So, take your pups out, let them Brain Cramp, egg them on, let them be silly, let them run, bark, growl, let them be free, let them be dogs… and tell them of the “Sand Dancing Dog” of Southern California, for he was all of those things, he was deeply loved, and he will be sorely missed by all who knew him.

Bodi was very lost the first couple of weeks after the loss, he really didn’t know how to act, didn’t pick up any toys, was always waiting for Tucker to be there and do his part so that Bodi could do the “second dog” thing, he still looks for Tucker when he comes in from the back yard. As the time has gone by, Bodi has opened up more and more every day. It is really strange, but I think Bodi must have spent a lot of the time that he had with Tucker just observing his interaction with us and storing it for future use.

Bodi is, and has been, since we were lucky enough to bring him home, an incredible little “V”, he is different then Tucker, not worse in any way, just different, and we have loved every bit of that difference.

Where Tucker was all about us, always paying attention to our every move and our energy, Bodi is a little more independent – always on the hunt, a little more aloof. When we raised our voices, even if by chance we were watching a sporting event on TV, Tuck would get worried, would leave the room and go hide in the bathroom – of course when we called him he would come running, his tail wagging, a toy in his mouth and talking up a storm in the Vizsla “Roo, Roo” kind of way. Bodi, in the same situations, will just open an eye, look at us to make sure all is well, and go right back to sleep, not in an “I don’t care” way, just in an “I’m really not going to worry, or get involved” kind of way.

But the really funny thing is, ever since Tucker passed on to that “Rainbow Bridge”, Bodi has been picking up more and more of Tucker’s traits, nudging our arms when he wants attention, getting in between Nancy and I if we try to get a little romantic, getting down off of the sofa when we are eating dinner to make sure he has the best view of any food that may come his way – all things that Tucker had mastered, and Bodi never was concerned with when Tuck was here.

Friends that knew Tucker for many years are commenting on how much Bodi is starting to act like he always did, in my office they say that if they look away and then back they swear that Tucker is sitting in his chair (yes. my boys have their own chairs in the office, and if I go into the edit bay I bring their blanket in so that they can be comfortable – although my partner thinks it is to save the leather sofa), when it is Bodi. Bodi is acting different when we take him to the park or around other dogs as well, whereas he was a little aggressive in his playing, especially around smaller breeds, he is much more mellow now, playing and running, but not nearly the “I’m a baddass” sound as usual, all things that Tucker always brought to the table… and now Bodi seems to be bringing forth as well.

I’m sure that a lot of it comes from the fact that all of the attention has swung his way, so we are acting different around him as well, different energy, but I also believe that Bodi was not looking to step on Tucker’s toes when they were together, he understood Tucker’s place in the family and choose to view it, not to overstep his place. Now that he has moved into that place in our lives, Bodi has assumed a lot of the characteristics that were obviously so important to us and Tucker throughout his life.

Don’t get this post wrong… Bodi can still be a BUTT-HEAD, but he is an incredibly loving, sweet souled, soft tempered, and smart, strong willed, BUTT-HEAD, that just seems to bring a little more “Tuckerness” to the party every day. May god bless all the “V”‘s of the world (and all the other great dogs as well) and may the loving soul of Tucker run through Bodi every day of his (hopefully very) long life.

I just wanted to put up a little remembrance post, a little touch of Tucker’s love, companionship, incredible temperament, loyalty, great nature…, well, just a touch of Tuck-a-poo.

Tucker was, for 12 incredibly short years, our little guy, he was there whenever we needed him, was our companion, would put himself between us and harm (as we would do for him), he was there, alongside me, comforting Nancy when she went through her cancer, he went with us on trips to comfort us and my Father when my Dad was dying of cancer, he was there with us to carve pumpkins, to cut Christmas trees, to hang out at car shows, he was there when we had good times celebrating, was there to comfort us when we had bad times, and was there when we just needed that warm body to hold on to.

We never went anywhere that we either took Tucker, or wished that we could have taken him, whether it was to the office, to friends houses, on trips to Las Vegas, cruising the sand dunes up at Pismo or up to Lake Arrowhead for the weekend. We never worried about introducing him to people, since to Tucker, if they were a friend of ours, they were a friend of his. He trusted us completely, and we trusted him completely, and I don’t think anyone who was ever around Tuck wasn’t touched by his beautiful soul.

Tucker was one of those dogs that seemed to never be happier than when he was with either Nancy, myself, or both of us. He truly came into his own and never looked more majestic than when he was with us, showing us off, or just hanging out. Nancy and I were also blessed in the fact that Tucker never chose one of us over the other, never took one of us as his “Master”, he always shared us, to the point that he would move from one sleeping point on the sofa to another 4 – 5 times a night, just to share his love with us and not spend too much time with just one of us.

As Nancy has said lately, “I know that time heals and it gets better, but the longer he is gone, as more and more time passes… the more I miss him”, and it’s true – since we did so very much with him, spent so many years with him in our hearts, we truly can’t look anywhere without seeing his spirit running around us, without thinking of him grabbing a toy and talking to us, without thinking of all those moments that we shared with him.

Lately we have been going to some of the special places that we shared with Tucker, we are sharing them with Bodi, and we are spreading a little bit of Tuck’s ashes. These are the beginning of the memories that we will be sharing with Bodi, of the companionship that will be forged by the three of us passing through these hard times, and sharing the beautiful memories.

So, hopefully things will get easier, as time goes by, hopefully the hole in our hearts will start to heal. By writing these memories down we don’t want to bring anyone down… we just want to share our “little guy” and our memories with everyone who knew him, and we want to spread a little of what Tucker was, and still is to us, to people that didn’t have the chance to get to know him.

Bodi, deep in thought

Well, it’s been 2 weeks and we think that the toughest part has started to pass for all of us… Although picking up Tucker’s ashes definitely brought back a lot of memories and a lot of tears for both of us. I’m sure by now Bodi is wondering what the heck happened to the energy that we used to have in the house, and whats with all the nose-blowing and salty faces.

We fell in love with Bodi on the day we met him, Tucker took a wee bit longer to find that love for his little brother, but grew to love him dearly in the 6 months they were together. Bodi, right from the start, has had a huge heart and has fit right into our little world, he has a great personality, great spirit, heart and soul, but we have noticed that over the last 2 weeks Bodi has changed quite dramatically, he has gotten a lot closer, and has been more in tune to us then ever before.

Bodi working at the office

Up until recently, we hadn’t taken Bodi into my office, except for just quick visits if Nancy would come by to get me to go with her and the boys for a walk.  Tucker spent many a day, and quite often, long into the night with me at the office, he had his own chair there, and as a matter of fact, many times we would have to pull up a chair for Tucker at meetings, otherwise he would walk around the meeting room nudging everyone, once he had his chair, he was content and would quickly doze off for the duration. For the last two weeks Bodi has spent quite a lot of time with Nancy and I at the office, and he has slipped right into the rhythm… greeting all he sees, and sleeping in Tucker’s chair just like it had always been there waiting for him.

The strangest thing is that he has started to do a lot of the things that Tucker did before he passed, things that Bodi never did until Tucker was gone, but things that were most definitely Tucker’s trademarks. As a matter of fact, the day that we lost Tucker, when we came home, Bodi did something that Tucker always did, and Bodi hadn’t ever done… When I knelt down to hug Bodi he curled up between my legs and leaned into me, exactly as he had seen Tucker do many times before.

Bodi warming himself in the clean dry clothes

Tucker also had a thing for clean, warm clothes. Nancy would bring them up from the dryer and pour them out over the bed, Tucker would always crawl into them, nuzzle his nose under the warm clothes, and let out a big sigh of contentment.  Up until this last couple of days, Bodi, thinking Tucker was nuts, would just look the other way and doze off.

As you can see, now Bodi has picked up on this little habit, and he is loving the warm, clean clothes.  He will get up from wherever he is laying, walk over and plop down on the clothes, letting them warm him all over, and just as Tucker did, he will let out that little perturbed grunt every time we make him move so we can fold the clothes, or, god forbid, we pull an article of clothing out from under him.

Bodi wishing he was the cream cheese

So, as you can see from the pictures (this one was taken this morning, with Bodi’s complete and unwavering attention being focused on Nancy as she sat the bagels down on the table outside New York Bagels – if you look closely you can see that the sunlight created a small halo over his head – just to try to fool everyone into thinking that he is a little angel), Bodi is coming into his own, finally being counted on as the number one dog in the house. His love is blossoming as he is receiving more and more love, and he is becoming even more a part of our family.

The walks are long, the dreams are large, the fun is grand, but the time is fleeting.  The Bodester is figuring his role out, Nancy and I are amazed at how great a companion he is becoming, how much we needed him, how much he needed us, how much we love him, and how grateful we are to be blessed with such loving and incredible friends, and such a great family.

Nancy and Bodi, bonding

Luckily we live in a slightly less populated area then most in SoCal, and this affords us the unique ability to just leave our door and be in the hills, away from people, and able to stretch our legs a little bit.

Bodi loves getting out and up into the hills, smelling all of the new smells, looking for new friends, or old friendships that need to be renewed.

Bodi is a hunting dog true to his breed, and down to the core, he thinks the most special thing in the world is leading us on little excursions into the brush as he sees a lizard dart off the trail, jumping at the chance to chase a bird, or a birds shadow at times, making sure that all in the immediate vicinity knows that this great hunter has entered their space and they should be fearful.

Bodi Terrorizing a Lizard

We, of course, try to reel him in when he goes off the deep end, we actually baby him to no end, worry that he will get into something he shouldn’t, work diligently to make him pay attention to us, all of the things a “Pack Leader” should do (at least in our minds).

One of our favorite hunting grounds is a water tank trail that is near our home, Bodi loves to get out there, criss-crossing the trail looking for critters, running back and forth, ahead of, and behind us… waiting for us to call him before he breaks off of the hunt. As we get higher on the trail, we get a great view of our little corner of the world and we can watch the sunrise or sunset from our viewpoint. The air is clean and cool in the morning, we can stop and give Bodi a little water and when he isn’t paying attention we can squirt him with the water from our water bottle.

Walking out here never fails to bring joy to all of us, working out, breathing the fresh air, we are all lucky to be here, be safe, and enjoy the good company of friends and friendly puppies that we run into up here.

Bodi, mugging it up for the camera

And Bodi, well he is off chasing something down, standing proudly on the rocks, letting all who pass know that he is the master of his domain, and the hunter extraordinaire…  at least until we call him back to reality and put him back on leash.