The Itsy Bits - Alec and Lucky

Sometimes you just cannot adopt another dog. Each dog who becomes a member of the family means added permanent expense. After 8 months we nearly failed as foster parents for a second time as it was looking like little Lucky was not going to be adopted. 

To be honest it was understandable. Lucky had been a puppy mill breeder and had produced over a dozen litters it was believed. At some point in her life as a breeder Lucky had lost her right rear foot. It was apparent the vet who had repaired the damage had done his/her best to create a functional foot for Lucky, she was simply missing about one inch of leg/foot and did the best she could with her repaired leg/foot.

Lucky was basically a feral dog when we took her in and had a mean streak about a mile wide. I speak from experience as Lucky bit me every chance she got for about a week. It was evident she had not only suffered from her experiences as a puppy mill breeder, she had been abused by a human male.

Lucky warmed up to my wife and daughters after a couple of months and would allow them to pick her up. Although I became her favorite human, and Lucky eventually picked a male to adopt her as her human, she never overcame her fear of being picked up by a human male. 

Lucky was nothing if she was not adaptable though and one of her favorite places to be was being held by a human, particularly her favorite human. Since Lucky would not allow a human male to pick her up, she devised an acceptable, to her, solution to the problem.

She would jump and poke me repeatedly until I sat down. As soon as I was sitting Lucky was in my lap and crawled up on my chest so she could attach herself and make known her demand to be held, preferably standing up. 

If I wanted or needed to pick Lucky up, all I had to do was sit down, pat my lap and she readily jumped up, ready to be held or carried.

Lucky's favorite person, and the individual who essentially "tamed" her, was our little Alec. Alec weighed all of 8.3 pounds soaking wet on a full stomach and Lucky, who was even tinnier than Alec, weight just slightly over 7 pounds.

To Al's dismay, Lucky just adored him. If Lucky was not in my lap or snuggling with another human family member, she was curled up with Alec. Nor did it matter how hard Alec tried to get away from Lucky, she simply pursued him until he gave up and let her curl up with him. Al eventually gave in and the two became inseparable buddies.

My wife nicknamed the two the "Itsy-Bits." They made a cute pair of Iggies.

Lucky was eventually adopted and led the life of a spoiled little diva. Sadly, her years as a puppy mill breeder combined with poor vet care shortened her life span. The last years of her life though Lucky lived as a spoiled Iggy diva, just as she was meant to be.