Foxxy and Vixen: Polish Sea Pups

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:04

Welcome back to another edition of the Dog Park Chronicle. Go girls.

SPEAKER_01 0:14

Foxy and Vixen are the stars of today's Park Pop profile. Both are Pomeranians. Foxy is a fox-faced Pomeranian of a reddish-blonde hue. Vixen is a classic Pomeranian and is white as snow. Poms are very elegant dogs with medium long double coats and a plush tail worn in a tight curl on their back. They are part of the Spitz family. Think huskies, for example, and are known for their intelligence and confident personality. The larger Spitz dogs were bred down in size to make a popular companion dog in the Pomerania region of Poland and Germany, thus the breed name Pomeranian. No lazy dog owners need apply. A palm's beautiful coat requires daily brushing and regular visits to a groomer. Barbara is mom to Foxy and Vexen. Barbara, how did you decide on a Pomeranian with so many dog breeds out there?

SPEAKER_00 1:21

Well, it ended up uh after we were, my husband and I were babysitting for my niece's Pomeranian, Lucy, and we had her for a month and we just fell in love with the little thing. And we had been talking about getting a dog when we moved up here permanently. And that was just it, the clincher. We just uh fell in love with Lucy and figured we're getting a palm. So I researched, I found a good app, good dog, and found a breeder in at that time in Providence, and we got Poxy. Love at first sight.

SPEAKER_01 1:51

That happens with a lot of us.

SPEAKER_00 1:54

He was so sweet, so cute, all white. And uh, I mean at that point he was completely white. He was white. Well, it was a very, very light base. See the parts in his tail, how light that is? That's that's almost white. Yeah, so yes, he was such a sweet dog and a funny, playful dog.

SPEAKER_01 2:10

And then now, how did you find the the breeder? Where did you look? How does one find when you decide what kind of dog you like? What do you do?

SPEAKER_00 2:20

Good dog, the app, good dog. I found they vet the sources to make sure they're not puppy mills and that they're good breeders, and that's how we found Foxy too. That's also how we found uh Vixen later on. But we had to go to Arizona for her.

SPEAKER_01 2:34

Yeah, that was a trapper. Okay, well, Foxy is three years old now. When did you start bringing him to the park? Is there a rule of thumb as to what age you bring a puppy to the dog park?

SPEAKER_00 2:46

I believe it's four months. It may even be a rule here for the park that the dogs have to be four months, but that I believe is to ensure that they've had all their shots so that they're not contagious to anybody and they don't catch anything from anybody else.

SPEAKER_01 2:58

So that's the important part that they've been to the vet and have all the shots. Puppy shots. Foxy was one of the earlier members of the Dorak Park pack. We called him the social director. Foxy was the first to greet any new dog coming through the gate, bouncing around, and inviting them to play. Barbara, what's Foxy's favorite thing to do at the park?

SPEAKER_00 3:23

At the park, it's to run. At the park, it's to run. I mean, for even our first Halloween, I made him a costume. I think it was the first, maybe it was the second one, um, where I called him um Seabiscuit.

SPEAKER_01 3:36

Sea biscuit, yes. Oh my gosh, I remember. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 3:39

I got a costume where it had a saddle with a mini person sitting on it, and and I engraved it with sea biscuits, so yes, that was yes.

SPEAKER_01 3:49

Anybody you ask at the park will say Foxy is the fastest dog here. He absolutely flies around the park. It's like his feet never touched the ground. So Foxy was an only child, and then along came Vixen. Why did you decide to get a second dog?

SPEAKER_00 4:06

Well, I made a few attempts at getting a second dog, um, but Zbysek, my husband, was kind of hesitant, afraid. So then one day when he said we should get him a companion, I jumped on it. And it was because at home he needed someone to play with. We couldn't be at the park all the time. And uh he requires a lot of energy to keep up with, so we found Vixen.

SPEAKER_01 4:29

Okay, so decision made. Again, what next you went to Good Dog?

SPEAKER_00 4:34

I went to Good Dog.

SPEAKER_01 4:35

And you mentioned that Vixen came from Arizona, which is a long way from Cape Cod. So, what kind of arrangements had to be made to get her here?

SPEAKER_00 4:44

Oh, she was flown up by the breeder's husband with him. He held her the whole trip. And we met them at the airport. We wanted to find a dog that was a little bit older, so she was already almost five months, that's why we took her. Um the pups were were mini, and I couldn't go through the training a bit more.

SPEAKER_01 5:02

I was just gonna ask now.

SPEAKER_00 5:04

No, no. So she with her, it was a lot easier.

SPEAKER_01 5:07

It's the potty training that always makes us hesitate when we get a little bit older. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:12

So we met them at Logan Airport, bringing Foxy. He had to meet her first, and he approved. So then we all went home.

SPEAKER_01 5:20

What was your first impression when you saw Vixen?

SPEAKER_00 5:23

Oh, I fell in love with her. She's such a sweetheart. She's got this cute little white face, all of her is white, and she is a classic palm, I think you mentioned. So she's got the little turned-up nose as opposed to Foxy, who's got the long one. So she's even cuter with that. And she's she's just a bundle of joy, a very affectionate little dog.

SPEAKER_01 5:42

Don't let Foxy hear you say that. Why not? He knows I love him more. No, he knows I love him more.

SPEAKER_00 5:47

Oh, come on, no favorites with the dog. No, I do, I do, I do. I have to.

SPEAKER_01 5:54

You mentioned that Foxy went with you.

SPEAKER_00 5:56

Did you have a plan when you got home for introducing Foxy to this new little way home for two hours from Logan Airport, so they were together and it was fine. He sniffed, she sniffed. They were fine, they were good.

SPEAKER_01 6:10

But is it kind of different? I mean, she was moving in on Foxy's territory. Was she he a little put out because there was another dog?

SPEAKER_00 6:18

He was excited first to play with her more. So uh not really, but just at at night it was a little bit more cautionary, had to be with him because he always slipped by my head on the bed, and now she was in there, so he got his nose rankled a little bit with that.

SPEAKER_01 6:36

And where does he fix him sleep?

SPEAKER_00 6:38

Well, now actually she goes off into the bathroom because she's got such thick fur. She gets hot. She gets hot and she goes and sleeps on the bathroom floor. And then in the yes, and then the middle of the night. She'll start out with us, then she says, I'm out of here. And then in the middle of the night or early morning, she'll say, Okay, I'm ready to come back. And so does Foxy, because he also takes off. He says, Uh, you know what? It's hers. So sometimes he'll stay with us, but uh sounds like he don't get a lot of sleep. Oh, yeah, it can be challenging. It can be challenging.

SPEAKER_01 7:08

But anyway, so Foxy was gracious to his new little sister.

SPEAKER_00 7:11

Yes, he actually is.

SPEAKER_01 7:13

Word from the park here is that as young as as as she was, Vixen owned the park from the moment she walked through the gate. Not just a beautiful young lady, but a very confident one. Yes. Now, what's Vixen's favorite thing to do at the park?

SPEAKER_00 7:29

Her favorite thing is to play fetch, like she likes to in the backyard. But here she'll walk around with the ball in her mouth more. It's just odd. She just won't be separated from that ball.

SPEAKER_01 7:39

I I call it the royal ball because Vixen looks like a princess at the moment. I know.

SPEAKER_02 7:45

She has a regal attitude. And usually her ball matches her harnesses. I know.

SPEAKER_01 7:52

She's also the fashion sense.

SPEAKER_02 7:54

She does. Way beyond.

SPEAKER_01 7:58

And what is home life like with your dogs to tend?

SPEAKER_00 8:02

Oh, it's interesting. I mean, they both have their things that they like to do. Foxy has um, well, they both go nuts. If I mention going out in the backyard and they both start barking crazy, we go in the backyard. And uh, she, of course, likes her ball, but she plays bobbing for balls because I have a ball of water out there for them to drink, always fresh water. And she'll take the ball and drop it in there, and then she bounces it around, then takes it out and runs off with it. So she likes to bob for the ball. Very, very strange. Uh, but uh Foxy, oh, and he will go with me anywhere. I think one of my best stories about Foxy is a few days after we got Vixen, I had an appointment with the vet for her. So I'm going to the car with her, and Foxy right away. I have to go, I have to go with you. So I was planning to leave him at home, it's big, but uh he decided he had to go. There was no not taking him. And we're driving, and he's sitting in his seat so regal and happy and looking ahead, and then all of a sudden I turn into the drive for the vets, and he goes, I know, and they always where where are we going? That's not the plan. So, but uh otherwise amazing how smart they are. It is, it is, but um, yeah, he does his Scooby-Doo. But uh she's very affectionate. Foxy seeks more affection to be. I don't know, I don't know. He's also he he can be a little bit, but she she's more of the love giver. She'll come up and and she'll play with you and lie down next to you. I mean, one of her first favorite things in the evening is she'll come over and puts her head on my shoulder and just lies there as we're watching television. But one of the funnier things is she's sitting on the bed or anywhere, and you blow at her, and she comes racing towards you and starts licking you crazy. It's the weirdest thing. It's very weird.

SPEAKER_01 9:49

Oh, there are characters, and and that brings me to my last question, which you've sort of answered. The candle club outlines specific breed traits. You have two palms, same breed, and obviously you're seeing a difference in personalities.

SPEAKER_00 10:06

Oh, great.

SPEAKER_01 10:06

So all Pomeranians are not created equal the matter what, the AKC says. No, definitely not. Obviously, they they're like people.

SPEAKER_00 10:15

Like people, different temperaments, personalities, absolutely, absolutely. I mean, Foxy is a sweetheart. At night, as opposed to her putting her shoulder on me, when he lies down next to me, he he has to touch me with his leg. It's like he he has to know, oh, you're there. Okay, it's so odd. But he's a sweetheart.

SPEAKER_01 10:34

Loving dog.

SPEAKER_00 10:35

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 10:35

Well, thank you, Foxy, Vixen, and Barbara for joining us on the Park Puppet Profile.

SPEAKER_00 10:41

Thanks for having us. Thank you. Yay! Is anyone wondering why this episode is called Polish Sea Pops? Well, here's why. The area referred to as Pomerania is in fact primarily a large historical region along the southern coast of the Baltic Sea called Pomogia, which means by the sea.

SPEAKER_02 11:06

Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, and we'll see you next time.