IT'S A SMALL DOGGY DOG WORLD

It seems the dog days of summer are approaching early this year. Named by the ancients for when Sirius the Dog star was closest to the earth and consequently was believed to warm the world, My Scoop thought it only appropriate to acknowledge these hot dog days with an article on woman's best friend: the purse pooch. Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall, it's a small doggy dog world after all. Can you guess which four legged friend stars in the life of which Birmingham leading lady?

1. Bella, Yorkshire Terrier (also known as a Yorkie), 1 year and 6 months
2. Bella usually sleeps in the bed with me. She likes to snuggle!
3. The cutest thing she does is turn her head back and forth when I ask her a question, like she really understand what I'm saying.
4. I dress her up (in poochie couture and jeweled collars)! And she has lots of plush toys, blankets with her name embroidered on it) and a traveling purse.
5. Bella goes everywhere with me... the mall, Lowe's, the park, any restaurants with outdoor seating... and she flies well too. Her first trip to the airport was only at 8 weeks old, so I guess she's used to it.
6. Bella can not live without her rawhide chew sticks! It's like a baby bottle!
7. Bella's favorite toy used to be a stuffed bear, but that toy has retired. Now 8. Bella's favorite toy is a squeaky plush elephant toy, that wears a pink t-shirt.
8. Her favorite treats are natural dehydrated chicken strips.
9. Bella has t-shirts, dresses, sweaters, a nightgown, and even a bath robe!

1. Stella Star, Boston Terrier, 3 years old in August
2. Where does your pet sleep? With me of course
3. What is the cutest thing they do? She dances like a ballerina for treats
4. How do you spoil them? I give her anything she wants especially lots of love and kisses on her velvet snout.
5. Does your pooch travel? Yes she does....as a matter of fact, she just got home from a vacation at Rosemary Beach.
6. What is the one thing your pet cannot live without? Her Baby Lamb and me :-).
7. What's his/her favorite toy? Mr. Corn. He is a plastic squeaky corn on the cob dressed in surfer clothing and sunglasses.
8. What's their favorite treat? Puppy Pepperoni
9. What outfits do they wear? She has a fur coat, rain coat, bejewelled t-shirts, sweaters and lots of sun-dresses. She is quiet the fashionista!

1. Thatcher, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, 1 1/2 years old
2. Where does your pet sleep? Everywhere but at night, in his crate
3. What is the cutest thing they do? When I talk to him, he stops what he is doing and cocks his head back and forth like he understands everything I am saying
4. How do you spoil them? At least 2 walks a day
5. Does your pooch travel? He loves the car.
6. What is the one thing your pet cannot live with out? ME!! And of course my parents (his grandparents) and his yellow stuffed bunny
7. What is his fave toy? He has a pink squeaky ball that I bought when I first got him. It is the most annoying toy ever but he adores it. He actually “talks” to it by making these crazy whining and barking noises.
8. What is his fave treat? String cheese
9. What outfits doe she wear? He’s sporting a nautical collar right now to get him ready for boating season. He also has some cowboy boots, a Harley-Davidson hat, a hunter green fleece jacket (very Abercrombie-esque), and a bumblebee costume.

1. Maggie, Toy Poodle, 2 1/2 years old
2. Where does your pet sleep? With me
3. What is the cutest thing they do? Being Maggie
4. How do you spoil them? She likes to be held
5. Does your pooch travel? Yes
6. What's his/her favorite toy? Miniature Soccer Ball
7. What's their favorite treat? Peanut butter toast
8. What outfits do they wear? Sweaters

1. Bella Grace, Welsh Terrier, 14 weeks
2. She sleeps in a kennel at night. The Home 'N Go Deluxe Soft crate in pink... with her name on it. When she is lounging around the house, she either sleeps on top of the couch (so she can keep watch over the living room), or on her Jax and Bones bed (which is monogrammed, of course).
3. The cutest thing she does is the way she snuggles up to my neck. She nestles her little head in just the perfect spot. She loves to be held, part of being a baby I guess.
4. She gets aromatherapy spa treatments from Generation Dog's Rub-a-Dub-Dog Spa and Bathhouse. I also bathe her in the same products at home. She bathes in the Renew scented doggy shampoo and conditioner, and finishes her bath with brushing, blow-drying, and then a spritz of Renew perfume!
5. Bella Grace goes almost everywhere I go. The only 'trips' she has been on so far are to my parents hometown, where she plays with her best friend, Elle, a wire fox terrier.
6. What is her favorite toy? A Honking Pheasant made by the American Kennel Club. We call it Honkers.
7. What is her favorite treat? Grandma Lucy's Tiny Tidbits Cheeseburgers
8. She doesn't wear outfits yet (because she is still growing), but she does have a bathrobe that she wears after bath time. It is white terrycloth, and has a rubber ducky applique on it. On a daily basis, she wears a cute pink collar.

Doree Walker, Owner Doree Denim at SOHO in Homewood/Former Miss USA

Holley Johnson, Editor Southern Living

Abby Dickson, Accountant Ernst & Young

Irisa Kahn, Sales Executive My 68

Pam Ledbetter

Answers: Doree Walker = Stella Star; Holley Johnson = Thatcher; Abby Dickson = Bella Grace (Welsh Terrier); Irisa Kahn = Bella (Yorkie); Pam Ledbetter = Maggie


Here is my little bundle of joy in his new sassy tee with his Furcedes from Generation Dog! Doolittle, Maltese, 7 years old