Satchmo

The nickname of the legendary jazz musician Louis Armstrong was 'Satchmo.'   That great man was the favorite entertainer of my grandfather, who would hold a white handkerchief in one hand and an imaginary trumpet in the other hand as he paraded in the living room of his big old house in Queens every time Armstrong was on television.

Everyone loved Satchmo... he was full of life and enthusiasm, always ready to play that trumpet and prance around the stage as the band played on. In my mind's eye, I can see Satchmo dancing along a New Orleans street in the midst of a Mardi Gras parade, with his trumpet in one hand and his signature white handkerchief in the other hand.

Satchmo. The world was a different place when Louis Armstrong was on this planet. I can hear him singing now.... "I see skies of blue, red roses too.... what a wonderful world.... oh yeah.... what a wonderful world."

The name Satchmo seemed like the perfect name for our new puppy, who has been a member of our little family for just a few days now.  My husband and I had talked about getting another dog, with the hope that a happy little puppy would be good company for Savannah as she continues to come out of her shell after being lost for those 12 days last May.  The once-happy Savannah that we knew before the unexpected fireworks exploded on our road has disappeared somewhat, giving us a dimmer version of the bright light that was once our Savannah.

Savannah has always been so comfortable with dogs, even more so than with people... so off and on, we looked at adoptable dogs on rescue web-sites. I had been posting lost-dog and found-dogs on Savannah's Facebook page, in the hopes of helping those dogs get adopted... my way of saying thanks to all the rescue sites that helped us so much when Savannah was lost.

A few nights ago, I posted a very cute photo of a six-month-old puppy that seemed to be a mix of undefinable cuteness.  I thought of showing the photo to my husband as a possible playmate for Savannah but I didn't do that... just too busy with other things that day.  Later that same day, my husband happened to look at the Facebook page, saw that same puppy, and said "We need to see about this puppy for Savannah."  And he called the number... the people brought the puppy by to meet us... and we now have Satchmo.

We went through dozens of names for this honey-colored puppy whose hair will be longer when it grows back..... the vet had to shave matted hair off this poor puppy's coat when he was found in a local park. As always, names that you think will work just didn't sound right. As a result, the puppy was nameless for his first 24 hours with us.

And then it came to me.... as I watched the puppy prancing up the stairs in his particularly joyful dance, I thought of my grandfather dancing around the living room and saying "Satch-a-mo" with his Italian accent.  All this puppy needed was a little white handkerchief and a Mardi Gras parasol and he'd be right at home in New Orleans. (Or dancing with Grandpa in that living room back in the 1950s and 1960s.)

I'm sure my husband thought I'd lost my mind when I told him that Satchmo would be the perfect name for this bouncy joyous puppy of ours. And the more I called him Satchmo, the more I knew that it was the perfect name for this 12-pound ball of soon-to-be fluff.

We have looked at photos of breeds which look similar to Satchmo, and he seems to be a unique combination of a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel and a Papillion.  His coloring is deep amber, or dark honey, or what they call 'ruby' in the world of Cavalier Spaniels.  Whatever he is, he is a bright ray of sunshine in Savannah's world, and both of them are learning their boundaries with each others toys, treats, and food bowls.

Louis Armstrong would be proud.