Local resident writes her first book, based on adventures with her dog

After her youngest child went to college, Tammy Arnau decided to get a dog. As a mom to two boys, then 20 and 23, she had a “mother crisis” and needed something to care for with both of her sons out of the house.

“A vet in Vestavia Hills had a picture of a puppy,” said Arnau, a Hoover resident. “I asked to take her home to see if she was a good fit. Well, she was awful. So I took her back and told them we tried, and I don’t think we can do it.”

But after a few days, she went back and got her and kept her over the weekend. That visit didn’t go any better than the first. She told her husband they couldn’t keep her. But Arnau couldn’t get the dog off her mind and went back again and the third time was a charm. So, after some training, Arnau said Allie has found her place in their home. 

“She has been rehabilitated, but not before she chewed 11 beds,” she said. “She got kicked out of dog training because she bit her trainer on the first day.” 

Now almost five, Allie is a well-behaved dog, and Arnau chose to chronicle the tough times in her book “Allie, NO! NO!” because for so long, those were the most common words in their house. 

A mix of a pit and a lab, Arnau describes Allie like a bull in a China shop. Although she is 70 pounds, she acts like a lap dog. Arnau said Allie has many endearing qualities, but the first year or so was rocky.

“I don’t write at all, but I’ve read thousands of children’s books with my kids and thought this would be a great little story,” she said. 

She kept the book personal, using the names of her sons and what they call their grandparents, and Arnau said this is the first in a series of books featuring Allie.

Copies of the book can be bought on Amazon through this link.