Mutt Mysteries

<<with apologies to Forest Gump…>> Mutts are like a box of chocolates—you never know what you’re gonna get. Over the course of our almost 40 years together, my husband and I have spun the roulette wheel of doggie DNA six times as we’ve welcomed “mutts” into our lives. Three were labeled Shepard/Husky mixes, one was a lab mix, one was a shepherd/Carolina dog mix, and one was straight up Heinz 57 (a Puerto Rican street dog with at least 57 breeds in his lineage.) Success ratio: 1 out of 6. Dog one was the truest to his cage tag of shepherd/husky mix. I suspect there were other breeds mixed in there, but those were his predominant size, color, and personality traits. So far so good. Dog two was not even close to the shepherd/husky mix the cardboard box at a South Carolina flea market promised. He topped out at a whopping 104 pounds. He had Doberman markings, but we never did figure out what the “big dog” cross was. And, um, let’s just same he didn’t have quite the IQ of

My Mutt Mystery novellas have starred a Jack Russell Terrier, a Rotteweiler, and an English bulldog as sidekicks. All have been great companions and have helped solved a crime or two. Darby, the JRT, in “Diggin’ up Dirt” in To Fetch a Thief , is based on my Jack, Disney. She and her brother are from the same litter. They’re ten, and still full of energy as ever. When it’s quiet with two Jacks, something is definitely up. My two like to dig in the back yard, especially if they hear moles and voles. One afternoon, I watched them dig out a mole, and it gave me the idea for a murder mystery. Darby helps her person find something spooky in the backyard of their new house. Mr. Oliver, in “The Fast and the Furriest” in To Fetch a Scoundrel , is a full grown, male Rottweiler who lives and works with his person at the fictional Amelia Speedway. He’s in charge of security, and he’s a big pussycat when he’s not on duty. Oliver returns for more adventures in “Wags to Riches” in the To Fetch a