We had a few dogs when we were kids, but they were “outside” dogs. Huey is an indoor dog (lap dog). Huey lives in our family room/kitchen/nook which is one room with tile flooring. Also, in the the room is the door to the fenced backyard which has a “doggie door” installed so he can go outside whenever he wants.

Huey has a vocabulary of at least 50 words. For example the word “work”. He is a very quiet dog and can go for hours without making a sound. If I go to another room (out of sight), he will bark/whine for me to return or take him along. However. If I say “I am going to WORK” before I leave the family room – he is silent and he knows I will not be back for several hours.

Huey also knows the meaning of the word “treat”. Recently, Shaowei was sitting in the recliner chair in the family room and I was a few feet away doing email at my computer desk. Shaowei was facing Huey who was sitting on the foot rest of the recliner. Shaowei was saying “Shake Hands, Huey”, “Shake Hands, Huey” and he was ignoring her (he did understand, but he wasn’t in the mood for tricks). I said “Hey, Huey do you want a Treat?”. He instantly looked at me and raised his paw to shake hands with her. It was hilarious – he just needed motivation.

He can “Shake Hands”, “Give Me Five” and “Fetch” (he is in the mood to cooperate most of the time). He learned to “Fetch” at a very young age. The unusual thing is that he plays “Fetch” differently with me and with Shaowei. With me, after he brings me the “Fetch” object, the game changes to “Tug-of-War” and we growl at each other for a minute or two before the release and next toss. With Shaowei he drops the object at her feet – because she does not like “Tug-of-War” and has scolded him for it.

Huey is a picky eater but he is very healthy. I read that his breed should grow to 10-12 lbs fully grown. He now weighs 14.5 lbs at 11 months old.

Last summer we were at a friend’s house outdoor bar-b-que. The friend cut a small piece of steak and dropped it on the patio for Huey. Huey sniffed it and turned up his nose and walked away. The friend was shocked. “My dog will eat ANYTHING! I never saw a dog refuse STEAK!” he said.

Huey likes steak sometimes – but he does not eat when he is not hungry (unlike me). He also likes variety. Sometimes he wants meat (his favorite chicken jerky). Sometimes he wants vegetables (his favorite raw peas in the pods).

You will really think I am nuts when I tell you my dog can talk. But he can say one word semi-clearly. The word is “Ahmm” – which is Chinese slang baby talk for food.

Shaowei has been saying “Is Huey hungry? – Does Huey want Ahmm ? – almost daily to him since he was a 3 lb puppy.

When I am in my recliner watching TV or taking a nap he loves to join me on the foot rest between my ankles. Until a couple months ago he almost never faced to me when we were on the recliner together. One day a couple months ago, he faced to me nose to nose and said “Ahmm”. I said “Huey are you hungry? – Do you want Ahmm ? He repeated the word “Ahmm”. This scenario has repeated at least two dozen times since. Really, my dog can say one word.

Just about the only time that Huey barks in an assertive macho way is when the doorbell rings or when someone says “Hello”. Huey is just about the most whimpy, afraid of his own shadow dog that I have seen.

But, when the doorbell rings or when someone says “Hello” he sounds like a mini pit bull. We don’t have very many people coming to our front door and we enter/exit thru the garage almost always. So when he hears the doorbell ring or when someone says “Hello”, he goes into intruder alert mode. Of course, when he gets close to the intruder all he does is lick them and jump on them.

January 2, 2007