As you all know, I have two very beloved long haired miniature dachshunds. Boogie, the runt of the two belongs to my sister and I affectionately refer to him as my nephew. Nugget, the alpha of the two, belongs to me and I consider him my son.
Despite being a little aggressive, Nugget is actually the friendliest once you get to know him. He’s smart, attentive and once he’s done sniffing you out and is assured he can trust you, he will be your best friend. When they’re in the pen, he keeps to himself quietly in the corner underneath his favorite blanket, but if anyone enters the room, let alone the house, he’s on his feet. He’s got a big bark that you wouldn’t believe was coming from a 12 pound dog that’s twice as long as he is high. He’s also got a bite to match and I have a few scars to prove that.
When he’s roaming around the house he’s constantly marking his territory (in his doggie diaper of course.) Almost every time he walks past me he nuzzles the top of my foot and rolls on his back so I can scratch his stomach. For the few seconds that he’s vulnerable, his defenses are down. His tongue hangs out the side of his mouth, exposing all 42 of his teeth, his paws are folded and he wiggles his lush tail in the air. As soon as Boogie comes over to get some scratching action, he’s on all fours again giving Boogie the side eye and snarling under his breath which is all dog/Yelawolf code for “Don’t. Make. Me. Go. Pop. The. Trunk…ON YOU!” On Boogie’s brave days, which are few and far between, he’ll snarl back and they’ll rough each other up with Nugget usually pinning him down to the ground, but most days Boogie runs the other way to his mama. Nugget isn’t territorial like this with everyone. Just his favorite people.
Even when other people try to pick him up to take him out of the pen, he backs away and growls. He growls for warning and won’t bite unless you get too close for comfort and he feels threatened. Even if he’s jumping up and down, whining and begging for you to pick him up, as soon as you lean over to do so, he backs away. He wants you to coax him out instead. Call his name, rub his chin, bait him with a snack. He has to be completely sure that it’s safe for him to come to you no matter how many times you’ve picked him up. A lot of times he won’t respond and will just sit there with a smug look on his face and fanning his tail. A lot of times he wants to see how far you’ll go. He gets a certain amount of satisfaction from it. But if you’re not giving him enough attention, he snaps at you when you walk past letting it be known he wants to play. And if you still don’t get the message, he groans, stalks off to his corner with a swing of his tail and says “Fuck you. I didn’t want to play with you anyway, human.”
He doesn’t even need you to get his own snacks or food. He just hops on the chair and then hops on the table to get himself. Oh, you won’t give him kibble? That’s cool, he’ll rip open the bag with his teeth and claws. You won’t take that pesky diaper off? He’s already on it. Nugget is about the most independent thing on four legs.
Once he’s comfortable around you and knows you won’t take his bone away, he is one of the sweetest dogs in the world. He attacks you with licky kisses, lays right underneath you and snuggles up next to you close on cold days. He likes to fetch and runs right to you when you call his name. In exchange for stomach rubs he gives you his unfaltering loyalty. He’s not aggressive because he has a lack of love, there’s plenty. He just wants to make sure that you’re deserving of it. He just doesn’t give it away to anyone because it’s not ordinary love. It’s unwavering, steadfast and probably the best you’ll ever know.
His dominance can be a little annoying at times, but I know underneath it all he’s as sweet as he fucking wants to be so it doesn’t bother me much. Everyone else in the house gets upset with him, but I never do. They just don’t know how to handle him. It’s funny how we’re so much alike. Like owner, like dachshund. Like mother, like son. Like alpha, like alpha.
Tags: me · my puppy baby · some real shit cus i'm just like my weiner · word vomit
