Micheal's story

About 6 and a half months ago, during my trying period, I got introduced to Micheal aka Mic.





Prior to my meeting with Mic, I had decided that I wanted a dog to accompany me at home because at that time, I had found myself without anything to look forward in life. Work was excruciating because you had to act happy, and home was misery because I'm just cooped up in my room all the time.

When I wasn't out drinking my sorrows away or partying to numb the pain, I was always depressed and alone at home.

That's when I decided to get a dog- as I have always intended to one day when I was independent.




Mummy was reluctant at first, as she has always been, but I managed to talk her into the idea and she lovingly gave in to me.

Immediately, I had already set my mind on getting a female Shih Tzu puppy.

1) Females don't mark their territory, thus avoiding possible markings at home that would definitely make Mum flip.

2) I had love the Shih Tzu breed for the longest time possible ever since I first worked in a pet shop many years back.

3) Puppy because I had thought it would be easier to train, and for the training to shape their character.




During the process of finding the ideal dog (which surprisingly only took me in all maximum 2 weeks to start my search and land up with Mic) and while at a dog farm one day, the farm owner had asked why I hadn't thought of adopting a Shih Tzu instead?

I immediately took to that idea because it is definitely more humane to give a second chance as compared to supporting puppy mills, and begun my search for an adoptable Shih Tzu.

After leaving the farm, my brother, his landloard and I ended up at the factory's office to search for adoptable Shih Tzus online. We tried in vain, and during the time that I was in the office, Mic caught my eye and I started playing with him.




First outing with Mic @ Sentosa


Enjoying himself.


I hadn't been interested in Mic in the beginning because I knew how active JRTs (Jack Russell Terrier) were, and I knew from the start this breed wouldn't match my lifestyle nor my family's schedule.

However finding out more from the landlord, I found out that this particular JRT wasn't like those I had encountered in the past; naughty and a tad crazily uncontrollable. Instead, Mic rarely barks, pees & shits outdoors, likes bath time, is sociable and hardly jumps and runs about like a mad dog.

The only things he loves to chase are rats from the factory, which is so adorable!




So after a day with Mic, I broke the news to Mum, who was wary at first because of the overly active reputation of JRTs. But convincing her that Mic was different and that we could try to settle Mic for a few days to see how he copes, she allow the idea soon after.



Mic's story was also a heart-wrenching one.

He was abandoned by his previous owner and left at my brother's landlord's factory one day. His story, as told by the landlord, was that Mic had jumped down from the basin while the owner was bathing him. For that, he broke his left front leg and was in a cast and couldn't move for a few months.

When I first met Mic, he was limping. You could see that his left-side muscles were much thinner than the right's, and his left hind leg was also not strong because of muscle-waste due to being handicapped for a period of time.

Look beyond his handicap, Mic has got the sweetest most gentle personality a JRT could ever have.

So ever since mid of February 2009, Mic had became part of my family.






Something unique about Mic is that he sleeps almost all the time when no one is playing with him, and if he couldn't hold his bladder, he automatically goes to pee in the shower area of the bathroom. And this peeing stance was something Mic came up by himself out of the blue without any training!

I was flabbergasted, but in awe at the same time.

Of course Mic is not without any less-positive traits. He has selective social skills to dogs, which means he isn't sociable to just any that comes by.




Bringing him to checkups, we also found out from the vet that Mic would have a permanent limp at his front left paw, and would have to wear a shoe when he is outdoors. That's fine to me anyway, and it's so cute that he gets attention of the "one-shoed dog" everywhere he goes. =)

Yet because of his uniqueness, I find myself loving him so so much!




Afterall, who is perfect in the world?


P/S: Did you know, Mic was named Micheal after his previous owner's name. And this name was given by the landlord, and I hadn't bothered to change it away because I thought it was meaningful.