Kris & Hope

Who is in the photo at right?

That's me, Kris, hanging out with my 3-year-old Boston terrier, Hope. I write a home decorating blog called Driven by Décor where I blog about my DIY projects and share the decorating inspiration and great buys that I find as I work on updating and decorating my own home. I also work part-time as a prenatal and cancer genetic counselor and am a wife and a mom of two girls.

What's the occasion for Coffee with a Canine?

Hope and I have coffee together every morning that I am home. After we've walked Hope's human sisters down to the bus stop, I grab a cup of coffee and head to the couch with my laptop to blog and catch up on e-mails. She always snuggles in right next to me and takes a morning nap.

What's brewing?

Most mornings it's Bruegger's coffee. I love their Hazelnut and seasonal coffees - my favorite is Pumpkin Spice! My husband and I are both lovers of Bruegger's coffee so we buy their bottomless mugs and get unlimited coffee all year. My husband's an early bird so he runs down the street to Bruegger's soon after they open and comes back with coffee for both of us.

Any treats for you or your dog on this occasion?

Hope has a very sensitive digestive system (I'll spare you the unpleasant details) and we've found the only way to keep her healthy is to not give her anything other than her dog food. Sadly, this means no treats!

How did your dog get her name? Any aliases?

We adopted Hope from a rescue organization and kept the name that she had already been given. We also call her Hopers and Hoper Dopers.

What is your dog's best quality?

Hope is incredibly sweet and loving, not only tolerating but enjoying when the girls scoop her up and carry her around the house with them.

How were you and your dog united?

We found Hope on Petfinder - she had developed mange and instead of having her treated by a veterinarian, her previous owner subjected her to several horrible "home remedies" that were entirely ineffective. After having lost every hair on her body (she looked like a pigmy pig!) and still itching like crazy she was turned into a rescue organization. The rescue organization started her mange treatment and put her up for adoption - after reviewing our adoption application and checking our references (I felt like we were adopting a baby!), we were thrilled when the rescue group called and told us that they thought we were a great match for Hope! We met up with her the next day and the whole family fell in love with her instantly!

Who are your dog's best pet-pals?

Hope's best friends were a small cairn terrier mix named Coco and a large black lab named Chap. Sadly, both Coco and Chap moved away a few months ago so she's in search of a new BFF.

Squirrel, postman, cat....?

Although Hope loves to chase squirrels, her arch enemy is the postman. The second that Hope hears the sound of mail coming into our house through the mail slot, she runs to the front door where she tries to grab the mail before it hits the catch basket. Almost every day she gets at least one piece of mail, which we find ripped to shreds when we get home. 95% of the time it's just junk mail that she gets to but she did put several teeth marks in our last tax refund check (the bank gave me some weird looks but they did cash it!).

Squeaky toy, ball, stick...?

Hope's favorite toy is a small stuffed orange fox. She also likes to run after tennis balls but she's not so great about bringing them back!

If your dog could change one thing about the you, what would it be?

Hope would want me to quit my genetic counseling job so that I could be home with her more.

If Hollywood made a movie about your life in which your dog could speak, which actor should do her voice?

Kristin Chenoweth - the teeny but sweet voice would fit Hope perfectly!

If your dog could answer only one question in English, what would you ask her?

What would you do if you actually caught one of those squirrels that you chase after every day?

Visit the Driven by Décor blog and Facebook page.

--Marshal Zeringue