Shih Tzu, Shitzu. What ever name you call them, these are the cutest little dogs. The little guy who was the model for this 9X12 watercolor painting just received his championship points at 10 weeks. The painting is available on ebay .

Scotties, Norwich and Wire Fox Terriers are all recent drawings of mine available on ebay. I recently received an email from one of my patrons. She said that she enjoyed my terrier paintings because I captured the impish nature of these dogs. There is nothing quite like a spunky terrier to remind you that you have to stay on your toes to out think them. For example, my Welsh was trained to drop a forbidden item in exchange for a treat. This worked well the first 7 years. Then he realized that this was a barter system. Now he is on the out look for any forbidden item that gets to his level, so that he can get the attention and barter from us. Luckily we train our terriers that they could never go out the front door. Guests and solicitors come to the front door so this is very a critical training accomplishment. A terrier's "chase instinct" can have him over the hill and gone from sight in seconds. Many terriers are ratters. They were breed for getting rid of the rodents. Terriers worked alone cornering rats and other vermin that plagued the farms. So if they see a squirrel they are off doing what they have been breed to do.

Wire Fox Terriers are a wonderful breed of dog. Here is my latest painting of a Wire Fox that will be listed on ebay.

The Wire Fox in my painting has a forever home where he is a full family member. His family takes excellent care of him. I wish all dogs were as lucky as he is.

All dogs, have some basic needs. A "need" is something that dogs have to have in order to survive and thrive. Water, food and shelter are basic needs. All dogs need fresh water, food and a place to get out of the sun in the summer and the cold in the winter. After these basic survival needs are met, they need a pack. Dogs are pack animals. They need interaction from their packs. Humans become part of their dog's pack. Many people don't understand how harmful it is to ignore and isolate a dog. Make sure that you and your family take time for your dog. He needs your leadership and your attention so that he knows he is an accepted member of your pack.

Thankfully, there are a number of animal charities that help the homeless and discarded animals. Please see arthelpinganimals.com for more information about the charities who support these needy animals.