Can You Hear This?

I don’t know what I was thinking last year when I wrote Puppy Power and boldly stated that Doggie would remain on the patio in his own house and not take up residence in mine. I should have known better……

Doggie has not only been given run of the first floor lately (he doesn’t seem to have any desire to go up the stairs, YET…….) he has his own special puppy pad to lounge on. While I do prefer this to his lounging on my good rug, it’s still an indicator of the preferential treatment he gets around here—-whether I like it or not.

As winter progressed, not that it was that cold here in central Virginia–balmy would be a better description, on the rare occasion that the temp dropped below 50 degrees, it was suddenly too cold for Doggie to remain in his custom log cabin (purchased for his benefit by Darlin’ Boy). He has to come into the house. In an effort to appease Doggie and protect my rug, Darlin’ Boy also purchased a special shear ling pad for Doggie’s indoor respites.

Once temperatures began to move upward and regularly topped out over 75 degrees, it was suddenly too warm for Doggie to remain outside through the heat of the day. Now he not only comes inside in the evenings to enjoy our company, he spends much of the day resting on his plush pad as well. He likes to have everyone in view. If I’m in the kitchen cooking, the pad is positioned there, if I move to the family room then dog and pad must be moved as well. Suffice to say I’ve been suckered once again—-at least this time it was only by the dog….

Since this is my first experience with a dog of my own, I’m still learning about the differences between dog behavior and cat behavior. Current cat behavior is that if doggie is on the first floor, kitty retires to the second floor, but that’s another story…

The next big change in Doggie’s life was his diet. Darlin’ Boy decided that Doggie was not getting proper nutrition. Since doggie is a very large but a senior citizen in dog years, Darlin’ boy felt that Doggie needed a custom meal plan. He is now served each morning and evening a special concoction, prepared fresh each occasion by Darlin’ Boy or myself. (I tried to let Beau play chef for him recently but that resulted in a visit from the fire department—details on that little adventure to come shortly!) Doggie’s acting chef prepares fried bacon, fatback or sausage with eggs and cheese mixed with a soft shredded dog food that’s supposed to look like hamburger. I must concede that Doggie’s coat looks more lustrous and his ribs no longer show and he seems a little more spry—despite his trouble with arthritis.

In fact, despite his arthritis and old age, Doggie is resurrected from near death to new puppy posture when Darlin’ Boy arrives wearing his favorite dog-walking ball cap. What had previously resembled a dog-shaped fur rug becomes an animated, frolicking bundle of pure puppy. Doggie’s exercise routine is as well-rounded as his diet now, too. He gets to walk/run up and down hills, around various trees and posts, which provide perfect watering opportunities for him. If he’s feeling in fine form, Darlin’ Boy has to carry not two, but three blue pooper-scooper bags. Doggie works hard to make sure the Darlin’ Boy gets plenty of exercise himself, by bending, gathering and then toting to the next available trash receptacle, Doggie’s droppings. Fortunately, the trash receptacles which host the blue bags are strategically placed around the neighborhood route but Darlin’ Boy can become extremely vexed if the receptacle dispenser of blue bags is empty. That’s sure to be the night that Doggie is feeling extra good and needs to make multiple deposits along his route. As he reaches the halfway point to circle back home, Doggie has a nice wade in the neighborhood pond to cool off and get a refreshing drink, and then Doggie finishes off his routine with a brief, yet apparently exhilarating, sinus clearing, as he tries to drink from the automatic lawn sprinkler heads he passes on the last leg of his excursion.

This is the dog’s life—breakfast and dinner prepared daily by personal chefs, climate controlled accommodations with both winter and summer homes, custom pad for sleeping and lounging, personal attendants for grooming/petting/poop scooping, personal trainers for regular daily exercise routines, and an array of toys for entertainment purposes.

Moral of this story, whenever you feel your life is not treating you in the manner you’d like, plan to come back next time as my dog—you’ll get the royal treatment, too!