Tie Dyed Puppies(Timothy Lanham) Tie-Dye Puppies

Christmas always reminds me of our beloved Jack Russells, Penny and Dodger. Their story began in the fall, not long after we lost our dear Lucky, another Jack Russell who had been such an important part of our family. Our hearts were heavy with grief, as they always are when you lose a beloved pet who’s been with you through life’s moments, big and small.

It was our daughter, Jessica, who unknowingly set the wheels of fate in motion. She came home one day and mentioned that her friend Tom's parents, Tom and Connie—veterinarians and the very same people we’d gotten Lucky from—had a new litter of Jack Russells they were planning to sell. Wendy and I didn’t need much persuading. We called Tom and Connie that very night.

A few days later, we drove over to their house, hearts still aching from the loss of Lucky. We’ve never been without a dog for long, and this time was no different. As we arrived, Connie and Tom greeted us warmly and led us to a pen filled with tiny, bouncing bundles of energy. Each puppy was unique, with its own markings and personality.

Choosing just one seemed impossible, but the task was mine. Lucky had been my dog, and I’d always preferred female dogs, so naturally, my eyes were drawn to an almost all-white little girl. She was striking—a black ear, a patch around one eye, and a black ring on her tail. She looked just like the RCA dog from my childhood. I knew she was the one.

But Wendy wasn’t done yet. Her eyes lit up when she spotted a handsome little tri-colored boy. “Look at him,” she said, scooping him up. “We have to get him too.”

I hesitated—after all, we’d only planned to bring home one puppy. But as I watched the two pups together, tumbling over each other with boundless energy and joy, I couldn’t say no. Wendy was right. They belonged together.

We drove home that evening with two squirming bundles in our laps. I named the little girl Penny, and Wendy named the boy Dodger. From that day on, they filled our home—and our hearts—with laughter, mischief, and love.

About two weeks after bringing them home, Wendy called me at work, her voice a mix of excitement and concern.

“Tim,” she began, “I’m not sure right now if I’m filled with joy or about to be very mad. If you can, bring a camera home, because Penny and Dodger look like they’ve been tie-dyed. They’re so cute, but when I find out how this happened, I might not be so amused.”

Curious and slightly worried, I rushed home. When I arrived, there they were—Penny and Dodger, their sleek white and tri-colored coats streaked with vibrant hues of red, blue, yellow, and just about every color of the rainbow. They looked like little canvases from an art class gone wild.

While I was driving, Wendy had been investigating. She discovered that our youngest daughter had stored a set of oil paints—given to her by my mother—in her closet. The closet door had been left slightly ajar, just enough for the two little rascals to burrow their way inside. They had chewed into the tubes of oil paint, and whether out of curiosity or mischief, they’d bitten and rolled in the paint. Being playful puppies, they then wrestled with each other, smearing the colors all over themselves and the carpet in our daughter’s room.

Our first concern, of course, was their health. We called Tom and Connie immediately. They reassured us that the amount they likely ingested shouldn’t pose a serious risk but told us to monitor them closely. Next, we contacted a friend who was a dog groomer. She brought over a small dog pen to confine the pair on newspaper to avoid multicolored messes throughout the house.

The next morning, it was like Easter on the newspaper, with rainbow-colored poop marking their antics. Thankfully, the pups showed no ill effects beyond their artistic adventure.

From that day on, Penny and Dodger brought joy and laughter into our lives. Their tie-dye incident became one of our favorite stories, and their images graced our Christmas cards for many years to come.

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