Dog Names Meaning Second Chance

A small white female Dachshund was born May 6, 1988, and ended up abandoned at a shelter in Virginia with her sibling at only six weeks old. When Denice Shaughnessy first laid eyes on the tiny shelter puppy, she instantly fell in love with the pooch. Denice was a single mother and a soldier in the United States Army. She wanted both puppies but could only afford one, so she paid the $25 adoption fee and took the small puppy home to her daughter LaToya. She named her new tiny puppy, 'Chanel.' 

After adopting Chanel, Denice was shipped out to Germany. Her Dachshund accompanied her. Chanel lived in Germany for seven years before returning to the United States with her owner. Denice went to live in California to care for her aging parent after she left the military. Chanel went with her. During their relationship, Denice and Chanel had many ups and downs. Denice's house burned to the ground, and they were forced to struggle financially. Often they barely had enough to eat, but Denice always made sure that she cared for Chanel first. Eventually, Denice met a man named Karl, fell in love, and got married. They all set up home in Long Island. Denice went to work for a local middle school as a secretary. Throughout the years, she would own three other Dachshunds but Chanel outlived all of them. 

One day, Denice's husband Karl was looking at a Guinness Book of World Records and happened to notice that there was no dog listed in the, 'oldest living' category. He promptly called Guinness publisher and made arrangements to send them a copy of Chanel's adoption papers that clearly showed her birthdate and that the dog was currently almost 21 years old. 

On Chanel's 21st birthday she was awarded a certificate stating that she was the oldest living dog. The dog food company Dogswell even threw her a huge birthday bash. 

On August 28, 2009, Chanel passed away. She was 21 years old. Undoubtedly, Chanel lived a long and happy life. She was a lucky shelter dog because she received a second chance at life with a loving family. In her later years, Chanel would regularly wear sweaters because the aging dog was often cold. She would also don a pair of goggles to protect her eyes since she suffered from cataracts due as a result of her advanced years. She had two doggy beds because she would often wake up in the middle of the night to go potty and have a difficult time finding her bed again. However, despite her seniority, the pooch enjoyed life to its fullest all the way to the end.