After the holidays, in the early part of 1999, I started to search for a puppy. I wanted a rescue dog - a yellow lab mix female pup, similar to the one I had before. But as luck would have it, there were none available anywhere! I scoured the newspaper, called all the local humane societies and rescue services, and looked at countless rescue websites.

On April 26th, I recieved an e-mail from from a woman named Liz, who works at Wayne County Humane Society. She told me that they had just gotten in a little yellow Lab mix female puppy, about 10 weeks old! She also attached a photo of the puppy to her e-mail. I had to wait for 3 days, to see if any owners showed up looking for the pup. But no one came, so I drove an hour to see the her, to decide if I wanted the puppy.
(See photo that she e-mailed to me - sorry it's blurry)

When I arrived, Liz showed me to a visitation room, and I waited for her to bring the pup. Suddenly, I heard a flurry of scrabbling feet and excited whining, and in rushed this crazed tan bundle of wild energy! She flung herself at me, and licked and clawed and scrambled all over me! Then she peed and pooped on the floor, of course. I tried to clean things up, as she leapt and whined and climbed over me. What a frenzied puppy! I wondered if I wanted such a crazy dog. So I sat with her, and tryed to decide if this was the "one". She settled down after a while, and I tryed to judge the temperment of the pup. Everything seemed ok...except for two things. She was CRAZY, and she was tan, not the yellow color that I wanted. But, it's silly to try to find an exact duplicate of my old dog. I could return the dog in 24 hours, if I was not happy with her. So I decided to take her home and see what my husband thought about it!
(See photo the first day I had her) (See photo of Sham & hubby the first day we had her)

Well, once I got her home, that was it. Hubby thought she was pretty cute, but he also said it was my choice. She was so soft and cuddly and clingy, that she grew on me very quickly. Being the sucker that I am, I decided to keep her, and make her a permanent part of my life. Little did I know what I was getting into, owning such a goofy dog!
(See photo of Sham settling in)

We decided to name her "Shammie", like the little tan suede cloth you dry your car with. The correct spelling is "Chamois", but lots of people have no clue of what that word even is, or how to pronounce it. So to make things easy, we decided on the phonetic spelling.
(See photo of Sham's face and big feet)

We had decided earlier to get a cage to keep Shammie in when we were away. I guess I bought too large of a cage, because she was lost in it. I figured that she would grow into it. (Boy, was I wrong about the size part.) So it was kind of cute, seeing this little puppy in this BIG cage! What was also cute is the way that she slept. She lays flat on her belly with her hind legs straight out behind her, like a frog. I figured she would grow out of that. (Another thing I was wrong about.)
(See photo of Sham in her too-big cage) (See photo of Sham lying on her belly)

Shammie also came with something unusual...4 dew claws! They should have been removed, of course, when she was tiny. But by now they were fully articulated, and the hind ones were enormous! They were pretty ugly, and she reminded me of a raptor dinosaur...the ones that kill their prey with a huge hind claw. The vet reccomended to have them removed at 6 months, when she was being spayed. I couldn't wait!

The very next day after I got Shammie, I started taking her to work with me. I had to keep her on a leash for a while, until I had time to train her sufficiently to be safely off-leash. And what an inconvenience this was! It is pretty difficult to ride and teach with a little puppy attached to you constantly. She was always getting underfoot tripping me, getting in the way of the horses, and generally trying to get herself killed as frequently as possible. She ate manure and dirt and cat poop and dead birds and horse hooves and sweet feed and mouse carcasses and old gum and anything else that I didn't want her to eat. Thank goodness there is a big tree by the outdoor ring, with plenty of shade. It came in handy to tie her up there, when I needed to school horses, or limit her diet, or just get away from her for a few minutes.

Luckily enough, it turned out that Shammie was pretty smart! When she was 6 months old, she was finally allowed to go off the leash. By then I was able to teach her quite a few voice commands, and stop and sit before entering the indoor arena, and stay out of the stalls and washracks, and stay out of the way of horses, etc. (she still tries to eat anything that's not nailed down...but at least now she looks over her shoulder first to see if monster mom is looking).

At the age of 6 months, we had her spayed and had the dew claws removed (yay), all at the same time. What a hassle, to keep her 4 legs wrapped up for 2 weeks! She was a very good dog, and did not chew on the dressings at all (one thing she DIDN'T eat). But they had to be changed daily, and they did not heal very quickly. The hind dew claws were the worst ones my vet had ever seen, and removing them was problematic, to say the least. She had to do full-blown amputations! The incision on her tummy healed nicely, however. Her legs finally healed, even though there are still little bumps on her hind legs, where her dew claws once were. But no more raptor claws!
(See photo of us napping after surgery)

One of the things that I have discovered about Shammie is that she LOVES the water! When I throw a tennis ball into the barn lake, she dives into the water with wild abandon! It is a sight to see...the reckless race to the water's edge, the 5-foot high leap into the air that carries her 15 feet out over the surface, and the sprawling belly-slam plunge into the water! It is pretty funny to watch, and she frequently draws a small crowd.
(See series of 9 photos of Sham diving into the pond)

Also, Shammie loves to jump the horse jumps! All I have to do is point at a fence, and say JUMP, and away she goes. She does combinations, gymnastics, and will jump up to 3 feet. Pretty good for a little dog! I call her my "Eventing" dog, because she is fearless, and if she crashes a fence, she gets right back up and does it all over again.
(See photo of Sham jumping)

She also enjoys horse jolly balls, her rubber tug toy, tennis balls, and her stuffed quacking duck (drives me crazy). Her absolute favorite toy is a rubber grooma curry! And a strange thing about her - she does not like to chew rawhide. She prefers wood (sticks or lumber) or empty plastic water bottles, or anything that the neighbor's dog has. The only toy she will chew on in the house is a plastic nylabone. Go figure. She once found an empty aluminum pop can at the barn, and chewed it to bits! Didn't even cut herself. Luckily enough, she has never once destroyed anything in the house. Usually she SLEEPS, once we come home from the barn.
(See photo of Sham catching a frisbee) (See photo of Sham sleeping UNDER the couch)

One of the things that Shammie is the most crazed about is SQUIRRELS! She loses her mind if she sees one. She begins to shake all over, and starts to whine and whistle. I actually feel sorry for her sometimes, because she gets so upset when she spots one. She has already caught and killed 2 of them, and she is hoping for more!

She is also absolutely wild about 2 other things...the HOSE, and BUBBLES! It is impossible to water flowers or hose the sidewalk with her close by. She has no regard for inhaling, swallowing, or choking on pressurized water. She just KNOWS she can grab that stream! And when I blow bubbles for her, she is a leaping, flinging idiot! She jumps higher than my head just to grab one. And if there is a breeze, she gets a LOT of exercise!
(See photo of Sham grabbing a bubble)

Shammie is now full grown. The closest we could figure her birthday is around the middle of February. She is a little over a year old, and it turns out that she did not get very big! She only grew to 20 inches tall, and weighs about 48 pounds. Not much of a Lab mix! A real shrimp! I am really curious about what exactly she is mixed with, but I will never be able to find out, with her being a rescued dog (I tease her by telling her she is Lab and Wiener dog). But actually, I have come to realize that her smaller size is better, because she fits in my car pretty well, and I can carry her across a muddy parking lot, to my car, without breaking my back. She also still fits in my lap, or she can curl up next to me in bed, without crowding me out of it completely.
(See photo of Sham sleeping on her back)

Speaking of breeding, I do think that she may have some kind of pointer mix in her. She points continuously, and is really crazy for all birds...almost as much as squirrels! She freezes, and lifts a paw, tail rigid, and stands there.
(See photo of Sham pointing)(See photo of Sham pointing while sitting)

Shammie has developed a very special relationship with her dad. Whenever he arrives home after work, she puts on quite a show. She whistles and whines, and tries to jump all over him. If he crouches down, she wraps her front legs around his neck and tries to give him a hug and wild kisses. She also loves to sleep on the couch with him, as he watches TV. She'd rather nap with him, than with me!
(See photo of Sham licking dad)(See photo of Sham sleeping on the couch with dad)(See photo of Sham watching dad leave)

We are about to start a new chapter in our lives this May. We are going to start agility training! Her love of running and jumping, and her strength and energy should have her well-prepared for the demands of agility. Who knows where this will lead us? I will keep the site updated with new photos and tales of our agility experience!

Shammie has been with me for a year now, and I can't imagine living without her. She has added a new dimension to my life, that much is certain! Her joy, energy, and unabashed delight at the whole world provide me with an unending source of entertainment. She is an absolute joy to be with, and she has certainly filled a void in my life that the death of my beloved old dog left me with. (See photo of Sham and me)

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