ERNESTO

Stop...do not adjust your monitor....this is indeed, not an Eskie. Ernesto is the Pappilon housemate of an Eskie puppy, Pooshok. We took him into rescue because he was cute as a bug. Ernesto and Pooshok's owner had run into some unfortunate medical problems, and she was facing a difficult and stressful recuperation period, which made her future uncertain. After one of the most emotional goodbyes ever, I brought Ernesto and Pooshok home to meet the Angels From God. Pooshok was adopted immediately, and Ernesto settled in for an uncertain stint of foster care.... You see, we don't usually place other breeds....people come to us when they want Eskies. Well.....we learned that we were in the wrong breed rescue, because Ernesto received more interest than any Eskie we have ever had. Even Pappilon Rescue contacted us, with an offer to take Ernesto into their foster care system. When you're hot, you're hot.


Let me just say, that Ernesto has about the worst case of separation anxiety that I have ever seen. And, he is the most creative maker of mayhem on the planet. I came home to find pencils, books, shoes....mangled....and let's not even say what he did to my glasses while I was asleep one night. You see, the common sense thing to do would be to crate him....but, while he was in the crate, his big mouth alerted all my neighbors to the rescue operation which is supposed to be SECRET....so instead I worked on building Ernesto's confidence. After three days of confidence building, Ernesto jumped into my sink and pulled out the rubber insert to the garbage disposal. Domestic Goddess that I am...it took me a few days to determine what it was that he had snatched.

Above, Toot gives Ernesto the once-over. Below...the mysterious object.


Ernesto with Willie Gonzalez.

Nonetheless....Ann and Diane had to talk me OUT of keeping Ernesto. His little face is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen, but, sadly, I cannot have five dogs.....(That is what I said prior to Irma La Deuce...that is, that I could not have four dogs....and now that I have four it is not such a big deal...and I have no doubt that one day I will have five). And so, Ernesto was snatched out of my arms by Diane, who was employing a defensive tactic to avert that above-mentioned eventuality. Diane took Ernesto home and told me that she was going to have him sleep in his crate. HA, I said, good luck. And sure enough, at 7:30 a.m., I got a call from Diane complaining about her crappy night's sleep. Night two, Ernesto was sleeping in the bed.

I must have talked to a million people about Ernesto. And, I was struck by Martha Possner, of north New Jersey, in particular. Martha has a Rat Terrier about Ernesto's age, and I felt that the two of them would work off some of that anxiety with romps around Martha's acreage. Diane and her family went up to Martha's place, and according to Diane, the house was so fabulous that she found herself angling for an invitation to move in herself


James Gonzalez introduced Ernesto to Martha and his new brother.

So far, we have heard from Martha, and things are going well. Except for the one day when Martha decided to "trust" Ernesto with run of the house while she went to work. You wonder, how a fourteen pound dog can think up such things. But, now, Martha has appreciated the value of crate training, and it looks like Ernesto is living in the lap of luxury in the big house on the hill.

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