We’ve been out and about at two North Carolina islands over the past couple months and danged if we didn’t have wiener dog sightings at both. Very exciting! (Admittedly, not everyone shares my enthusiasm in this department.)
Maddie a brown and red dapple dachshund from Rock Hill, SC
On Bald Head Island, a car-free community I wrote about for Budget Travel (July issue) and the Boston Globe (coming up), we met 2-year-old Maddie from Rock Hill, South Carolina. She’s a red dapple dachshund, not a common blend. Wessel had never seen a dapple before, which is spotted like a Dalmatian and not to be confused with a piebald coat, which has a more blotchy beagle pattern.
Maddie with human companion Cortnee Rushlow
Maddie’s human companions are Cortnee and Chad Rushlow, who said Maddie is mad about the beach. Bald Head Island is so dog friendly that canines are allowed to hang 10. Poop-scoop bags are at every one of its more than 40 public beach access points. Really, I don’t understand why more beaches don’t allow dogs, at least one day a week or something like that. OK, I do understand the No. 1 and No. 2 reasons, but, dangit all, dogs love the beach, and so do their humans!
Jean and Chris Frey with Stumpy and Morgan
And, yes, there are some other enlightened communities, such as Oak Island, where we went over Fourth of July weekend, just for fun! Wessel first spotted Morgan, 6, a black-and-tan male, and Stumpy, 8, a red male, zipping along the shore pulling their humans while we were relaxing in our beach chairs. I bolted up, grabbing paper, pen, and camera and rushed over to introduce myself to Jean and Chris Frey of Havre de Grace, Maryland. They were vacationing in a pet-friendly house right on the beach. Lucky dogs, all of ‘em! We stayed in a house that doesn’t allow pets, so poor Roxy and Sabrina had to stay home.
Stumpy pulling his human companion on the beach
The Freys, long-time dachshund devotees, recently had adopted Morgan and Stumpy through Dachshund Rescue of North America after losing two other beloved dachshunds the year before. Like me, they subscribe to the dachshund lovers’ creed: “you can’t have just one.” The low-riding pooches looked sooooo cute trotting down the beach, with specks of sand sticking to their noses and bellies.
Tags: bald head island, dachshund, dapple, oak island, piebald
