For Shannon about Westies

I saw the pictures you posted of Westies on your blog, Shannon. Aren't they to die for? SO cute.

Anyway, it would have taken up too much space to write about Westies in a comment, so I thought I would post. For you and in case anyone else is thinking of buying the most precious breed of dog E-V-E-R!

Of course all dogs take some time to train, but Baby wasn't hard at all. She adapted easily from a potty pad at the breeder's to going outside on the lawn. Westies are curious but won't stray away from property. Baby always did her business and came right back to the house to be let in. It wasn't hard to train her because we took her out frequently, so she learned where to do her business very early.

Westie females are easier to train for first time owners though. We had wanted a girl anyway. We went to a breeder near Hermitage.

As for shedding, Westies do not have a shedding period. But like all things with hair, some will rub off. If we hold Baby, there will be a few little hairs on our shirts after we put her down. But it's nothing serious at all. We just take a little lint roller to our clothes (if even necessary).

Westies can be active dogs, but they mostly adapt to your lifestyle. There are times that Baby wants to run around the house and play chase. But she mostly is a little lap dog that wants to be around her family. She is laying at my feet right as I type this. Westies love to be held.

As one can see.

Westies are also very loyal. They love their family unconditionally and always want to be near someone. So during the day, Baby stays with Mom, wherever she is in the house and always sleeps with someone. In high school, she and I would always cuddle up at night. I didn't need a stuffed animal because Baby would be there!

The breed are also fierce watchdogs. But not yappy. Baby doesn't bark. At. All. There have been some occasions where Dad will be entering the house through the back door and Baby barks and growls because she thinks someone is trying to get into the house. But she always lays back her ears and rolls over for a belly rub when she sees it's just Dad.

Keeping a watch as I sleep.

Westies are great with kids. And other animals. They are very forgiving, so if a toddler is tugging on a Westie's ear, the Westie just takes it. Very passive. We will pick at Baby and she just ignores us, whether we are pulling on her tail or just poking her.

She probably really hates this, but she just takes it. So relaxed.

As I said, Westies are great with other animals too. But it has to be animals that live with the Westie. Baby doesn't like the stray cats that come into our yard. That is the one other thing that will get her growling.

Baby loves to lay around the house. Lay around wherever someone else is.

What a life.

The only thing about Baby is that she has some skin problems. There is no shedding, like I said, but Westie's skin in very dry. It all depends on what the owner wants to do, but Mom takes her to the groomer's every other week or so. But sometimes we just wash her, which takes about an hour. And cute pictures abound. The last picture above is her today at my feet. She has a patch of hair missing from her back because she went in for surgery on Monday. She had a few tumors removed.

Westies have very dry skin and need to be brushed on a regular basis to help distribute the oil from their skin which helps protect it from drying out. But just like any dog, they just need a good home and owners who want to take care of them.