... Kerry. When I first met my wife in 1967, her family had a black and tan dachshund named Snoopy. Best damn dog I ever knew and I have some great pictures I took of him sitting up and begging.

In 1975, we got another dachshund for our two sons. Named him Muggsy and he was the only dog I've ever known who could climb trees. We had one in the backyard of our home in Irvine and the trunk came up out of the ground at a slight angle toward the fence. Just enough that Muggsy could run up the trunk and jump onto the fence. He would then prance along the top like a d*mn cat.

And you're right about tough, too. Muggsy used to go after possums in the back yard and if he caught one, would kill it by biting it on the neck and throwing his head to the side, snapping the possums' neck. Anyone who's ever seen a possum in a fight knows they are no push overs, either.

My sister-in-law currently has two long-haired dachshunds named Ollie and Murphy. Great little dogs, too.

----- jim o\-S