In Remembrance of Dyzio od Abruchy: My One and Only

Six years ago on this very day my true love died.  Dyzio od Abruchy.  He was a miniature dacshund, rusty brown in colour with a fluffy tail and eyes that made you melt.  Born in Poland and raised in five different countries, Dyzio was a well-traveled dog who was loved by all who knew him.  He traveled on the plane. First class with a ticket and private box.  He was indeed a lucky dog.  He was my baby.

He spoke not Polish his birth country, nor English, but spoke Thai.  He understood when I told him to go fetch his toy upstairs and bring it down to play with me.  He understood when we told him to keep quiet.

I got Dyzio in Poland where I had been living with my parents at that time.  It was 1993 and the Solidarity movement in Poland had just won their first elections in a Communisty country.  For the first time, Poland was moving towards a free market economy.  Everything was changing, and it changed fast.

I remember, in other countries you had pet shops and you had kennels where you can go buy a dog.  Not in Poland.  You had to read a polish newspaper and give the sellers a call.  While the rest of the world had digital phones in Poland we used the rotary phone with the round dial.  It was awesome.

My piano teacher did us the honours and read the classifieds for us.  She rang a lady up who had a batch of newborn dacshunds, and before we knew it, a few days later Dyzio was on the train from Olstyn. It took more than 5 hours for him to arrive at our house.  The only thing the seller asked for was the cost of the train tickets if we changed our minds.

Who would though?  A cute little puppy with huge feet climbed out of a tiny picnic basket.  He was barely the size of my hands and he felt so warm in them.  It was love at first sight.  A pedigree with champion parents, he had a green tatoo on his left ear.

I took out every penny of my savings and from that day on, he was part of our family.  I remember when he took his first steps up and down the stairs.  I remember him being toilet trained and running out into the first snowfall.  He breaked so fast  he left track marks on the snow and ran back into the house.   It was minus 20 degrees celsius.

I remember him barking at the wind that had swirled a bunch of leaves in the corner of the balcony and digging a hole underneath the fence to visit his wired-hair dacshund neighbour friend.

I remember Dyzio riding on the back of my bicycle out to the lake in Brussels, chasing down the ducks in the garden, going through quarantine and being bitten by ants in Singapore,  staying in the airconditioned room in Bangkok, and just enjoying the crisp cold air of Vienna.  Vienna was his final resting place.

I remember him jumping on my bed to wake me up and stuffing his nose beneath the door cracks. I remember him barking whenever he saw me leave with a bunch of luggage.  He was one smart and clever dog. 

He was a dog with character and a heart that was so big it just won you over.  For over a decade he met most our guests and welcomed them like a true diplomat's dog.   We like to believe that he chose to die in Vienna where the weather is similar to Warsaw.   He died 4 days before he was to travel back to Bangkok.  I guess he knew where he wanted to stay.

Dyzio touched my heart so much.  Dogs are great for the heart and soul.  They have unconditional love and are always happy to greet you no matter what a bad day you have. 

Rest in peace my dear dog.  Hope you are having fun in doggy heaven.  Wolf wolf! I miss you.