Woof! Hi there! My name is Stanley Phineas Beauregard Allen. I don't know about those middle names. Dad said he wanted me to have a good Mississippi name, so he added those. He's a good Dad, so I put up with it.
Just so you know, I'm dictating my story to Mom while she types. I have trouble pronouncing my "r" and "l" sounds, so, like the over-protective Mommy she is, Mom worried that I wouldn't type it all out right. Anyway... I told her that I really wanted my story out there in cyberspace and she thought that was a fine idea. So, here it goes.
I really don't remember my life before I became a part of the Allen family. In my extensive TV research (I watch a little TV now and again.), I've learned that we tend to forget bad experiences. I guess things weren't so great because I ran away.
I do remember the first time I saw my savior, Uncle Jeff. I was at a busy intersection in Leon Springs, TX trying to keep up with the flow of traffic. I don't know why everyone was so upset. I prefer to run on asphalt and I was on the correct side of the road. People were honking horns at me and trying to get around me. I was a little shaken up by the whole experience. Then, a big car came up beside me and I was lifted into it. A really nice man started to rub my back and talk to me. That was Uncle Jeff.
It wasn't long before I was carried to a building with a lot of nice people in it. They gave me food and water and lots of love. That's where I met my Aunt Kim, Uncle Alvin and MY DADDY!!!! I ran from person to person seeking out the love I'd been missing for so long.
Eventually everyone decided they'd better get back to work (It's the government you know... so it took them quite a while to decide on that. Woof!). Dad and Uncle Jeff carried me to a pen at the top of a hill and left me for a while. Then Dad walked a small distance to a house and came out with a lady. I didn't know it then, but she would soon become my beloved Mommy.
When Mommy and Daddy reached the pen I let out a loud howl. Mommy came in and bent down to pet me. I let her, but I still wasn't very sure about everything that was going on. I didn't immediately roll over on my back like I do now. Lots of people came to see me that day. They kept talking about me like I wasn't even there. They kept saying stuff about the Humane Society and how they didn't want to take me there. Uncle Jeff already had a fur kid and so did Uncle Mike and Aunt Katie. That left Mom and Dad. Dad didn't really want a dog much, but Mom had been wanting one for ages. Since Dad is really nice, he let Mom keep me at their house that night.
Mom and Aunt Katie bathed me and tried to clean me up as much as possible. I looked like that picture up there at the top right when they were done with me. Then Mom held me while Aunt Katie clipped my hair. I felt so much better.
I slept on Mom and Dad's porch that night. I still didn't feel all that great. I'd been on the road for a long time. My nails were really long, so my paws hurt pretty bad. My ears were really infected and stinky and I had a bunch of teeth that were infected and needed to be taken out. I even had a little tumor on my back. But... it was good to have food, water and love.
Things were confusing for the next few days. Lots of people came to see me and love on me. Uncle Alvin and I became really close. I even jumped right into his lap one time. Uncle Alvin wasn't quite ready to take me on. I understood. I know what it's like to be a free-wheeling bachelor. It's hard to give up the freedom. I still think I'd have attracted a lot of chicks though.
The interesting thing about it all was that, the very next day, Mom and Dad started packing up all the stuff in the house. Just a couple of days after I moved in, they had people come in and put all their stuff in boxes. Mom took me to the doctor that Thursday. I hated that! I put up such a fuss over getting my nails clipped and getting my shots. They even put this thing in me so that they could find me if I got lost. I'll never forget what Mom said to me when we got in the car after being in that horrible office. She said, "Well, now you're all mine!" She seemed really happy. I was a little confused when we got home and all of our furniture was being loaded onto a big truck. Mom had to leave for a while. She had to go to the doctor too! After all the fuss I'd made with my doctor, I decided to take a nice long nap.
That night, Mom went to the store and bought me lots of nice stuff. I got a crate and a nice little bed, some toys, treats and some good food. Mom and Dad cleaned a lot the next day or so, and then, just like that, one morning we were on the road and I never saw that house again. I spent most of my time in Mom's car inside my little crate. First we stopped in a place called Ft. Worth so I could meet my Great Gwammy, my Uncle Aaron, and my Great Aunt Donna. I also met my Aunt Jennifer and Uncle Jose.
It was kind of scary. I still didn't know Mommy and Daddy real well and here we were... already off on an adventure. Mom told me to get used to it and learn to enjoy it. This is what life's like with Daddy! I was just so happy to have a family again that I was a really good boy. Those were good times. I got to sleep in the same room with Mommy and Daddy in my bed. We stopped a while later in a place called Tupelo, Mississippi so I could meet my Gwammy and Pa Pa Allen. Pa Pa is great. He feeds me stuff when he thinks Mom's not looking, and he calls me Andy Rooney for some reason. It's pretty funny though. Gwammy is really nice too.
About the time we got to some mountains in North Carolina (my new home), I could tell that my ribs weren't sticking out so bad. I felt full most of the time and my medicine started kicking in. My ears didn't hurt quite so bad. Then, one day, I got to see my new house!
I have been here ever since. Mom got really excited the other day when she gave me what she calls my heartworm treat. She bent down and said, "You've been with us for six months my boy!" I got excited too, but just because I thought I might be getting another treat.
I really love my Mommy and Daddy. I jump all over Dad when he gets home from work and he plays with me for a little while. He is so good to me. He walks a mile with Mommy and me almost every night, even when he is tired. I heard Daddy admit to Mom the other day that he never thought he'd love a dog so much. It made my little puppy heart almost burst with joy.
I follow Mommy wherever she goes now. I have some wonderful neighbors. Uncle Buddy and Aunt Brenda kept me all week when Mom and Dad went to Colorado this month. They always have treats in their pockets just in case they see me outside. They spoil me rotten and I love them for it!
My only complaints... I don't get to sleep in Mommy and Daddy's bedroom, I don't get to get up on the furniture, and I don't get treats any time I want them unless I'm at Uncle Buddy and Aunt Brenda's house. So that's it! I am a very blessed puppy. Lots of people have loved me and cared for me up to this point. Here's how I look now. I could be the Milk Bone Spokespuppy! I am a very healthy, happy and energetic boy. Mom is beginning to doubt that I'm really between 8 and 10 years old. I have too much energy for that!
