I have had pets for most of my life, but my first personal pet was Sam. Before that, they were always family pets. I got Sam as a puppy in October 1972. When I graduated from college in June 1970, I got an apartment about 5 miles from where I worked. It was the first time I had ever lived alone. The first two years I enjoyed the solitude, but within a couple of years I started getting lonely. It was time for a pet. I really don’t know why I chose a dachshund who was the biggest in the litter and grew up to be a 40 lb lap dog.

Of course, being a puppy, I had to house break him. That was a frustrating experience for both of us. It didn’t take long for both of us to be “best buddies”. When I would get home after work, Sam was always waiting for me at the door. He had held it for 10 hours, so was ready to do his “business”. Being a hound, he always had to smell everything during our daily walks.

As the years past, Sam and I took on the same personalities. We both liked our space and occasional solitude. The one pleasure of his life was his pork chop chew toys as seen above. Once he ran out of them and I didn’t feel like going to the store. But, he just wouldn’t leave me alone until I did.

He lived for twelve years. I really missed him when he was gone.