Adventures of Mustang Sally

Lone Star Love Once my new Pals, Don and Patricia, get over the surprise of my arrival, they start talking about what my "everyday" name should be. Listening to them talk, I learn that my official, "registered" name is Maktoum Hathrah. Even a pup like me is pretty impressed by that. It turns out that "Maktoum" is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier bloodline. It goes all the way back to my great, great grandparents on both my father's and my mother's sides of our family. I also lean that my father is called the "sire" and my mother is called the "dam." And me, because I'm a girl dog, I'm called a "bitch." I don't like that very much. (Boy dogs are just called "dogs"--as if they run the whole show.) But I don't have any say in the matter. My official color is "Red and White." They also call me "pretty with permanent make-up." I figure out that all this fancy talk just means I have a nice, short, reddish-brown coat with some white markings and some pretty sexy black markings around my face and muzzle. But back to the "name game." My new Pals decide that since their new baby (me!) is going to live in Texas, she should have a real Texan name. They start talking about how, a few years ago, they spent time on the Sixth Avenue "drag" in Austin. And how, in one of the clubs, they danced to the song "Mustang Sally." So that's it. I become Mustang Sally, or just Sally to my friends. Now that the holidays are over, I seriously start to check out my new neighborhood. Everyone knows how curious puppies are. We just can't help it. Every day is a new adventure. One of the first things I do is take a look at the fence around my new backyard. My Pals don't realize that it isn't "puppy proof," but I sure do. In fact, I sneak out several times. One time I run after two dogs who are walking down the road with their "Master." I'm too young to know that you have to be careful which dogs you try to play with. But I sure learn my lesson quick. Before I know it, the bigger dog is grabbing my head. I start squealing. He lets go and, boy, do I run. I can hear my new Pal Don calling me and I can't wait to get back to him. This experience teaches my Pal a lesson. He ties this stuff called "wire mesh" all the way around the bottom of our fence. I try to find some holes in it so I can get out and explore and have some fun. I mean, after all, I am a Terrier and it's bred into me to dig, tunnel and chase after things like balls and sticks. And squirrels. Don't even get me started on squirrels. I quiver. I love chasing squirrels. I think it's the most fun a puppy can have. One day I'm playing in the backyard and this brownish, grayish "thing" comes flying over the fence. I don't know what it is, but I know I don't want it in my backyard. So I run after this thing. You have no idea how fast I am. I hear my Pals telling people all the time that I can do one hundred feet in three seconds, whatever that means. Now I'm running after the thing so fast I can't stop. Nobody has told me about water or that there is a lake out here. Before I know it, I'm flying into this wet stuff and it is cold. I'll tell you, it really wakes me up. I can feel myself start to go under the wet and I can't get any air. As I sink down, I'm thinking I'm a "goner." But I start paddling my front legs and my head comes out of the water. And then I sink again. And then I paddle some more. Each time my head comes out of the water, I bark as loud as I can. Lucky for me, my Pal Don is in the backyard. My barking gets his attention real quick because I usually don't bark. He comes running over to the edge of the lake and keeps saying something that sounds like "holy shit." Then he lies down at the edge of the water and stretches out his arm. He grabs my neck and pulls me out. Just in time too. I can't stop shaking and shivering. My Pal carries me into the house and wraps me in towels to dry me off and keep me warm. I think this is the first time I understand that my new Pals really care about me. And I learned a lesson. Now, whenever I hunt for squirrels, I always start my hunt down at the edge of the lake. That way, if I spot a squirrel, he'll be somewhere between the lake and the house. So when I go after him, I'll always be chasing him toward the house and I won't fall in the water. One day, my Pals are outside watching me. They see me taking my "stalking stance," so they know I've spotted some kind of critter. Then I hear my Pal Don say to Patricia, "You know, Sally is really smart. She's going to run from the lake to the house so she won't overrun into the water again!" Hearing this makes me feel good. Even though I'm only seven months old now, I can figure out that if my Pals think I'm smart, they'll want to keep me.