Doogie

One of the neighborhood dogs is named Doogie. He reminds me of the dog on Hee Haw and he is big buddies with Honey that lives next door to me. I don't even know who he belongs to. I think he belongs to one of the families that lives through the woods back behind me.

I was walking across my yard to go to my mailbox the other day and I happened to hear some of the neighborhood boys running thru the neighborhood, romping and ripping, and having a good time. Running right along with them was Doogie having the time of his life. He was barking and chasing and jumping up after the boys and I could tell he was just happy to be playing again. Those boys brought out the pup in Doogie and it was good to see.

My Supper Dish Is Empty

The other night I was sitting at my kitchen table working on something when I heard Molly's toenails clicking across the tile in the kitchen.

Molly hates eating alone so she usually waits until I am in the kitchen or the living room before she eats. I wasn't paying much attention until I heard her scratching the bottom of her empty supper dish with her right front paw.

I turned around and she was looking at me and this time, she slapped her empty supper dish with her paw to emphasize that it was empty and how could I let this happen.

I sprang into action and quickly filled because I didn't want to feel the wrath of Molly for the rest of the day.

Molly And Pops

Today would have been my fathers 75th birthday. My father loved dogs. We owned at least one dog and usually 3 or 4 since the day I was born. Bird hunting was one of my father's passions. We had his bird dogs that stayed outside and served as part-time pets during the hunting off-season and we usually had a family pet for in the house as well.

Molly did not like Pops for whatever reason. Just the very sight of my father sent her into fits of growling and barking that usually wouldn't stop until he left. I have no idea why Molly did not like Pops and neither did he.

It really bothered him that Molly didn't like him and he tried his best to make friends with her. We had a cookout at our house one time and my wife made me put Molly in her lot outside so she wouldn't be in the way. While everyone was socializing and having a good time, my father sat in a chair near Molly's lot and tried to make friends with her. She kept her distance and wouldn't have anything to do with him. This went on for 4 hours until my parents finally left. I believe it really hurt my fathers feelings because a dog did not like him.

The Daily Routine

Molly has been back from the kennel almost a week now and it didn't take her long to ease back into her daily routine although there are some of her routines I would love to reset.

One of these would have to be her waking me up between 2:30 and 3 AM so I can take her outside so she can use the bathroom. Don't get me wrong, I am glad she wakes me up because it is better than waking up to the strong aroma of doggy-doo wafting thru the house and burning my nose hair. I have the worlds worst time of trying to go back to sleep.

Her first couple of days back, she let me sleep until 6 AM a couple of mornings, but now that she is rested up, she is ready to roll on her timetable. Its Molly's World.....

A Morning At The Park

I decided to take Molly to one of the local parks this morning in Fletcher. I used to take her to the park all of the time when I lived in Gastonia, NC but the park down there was only a mile or two away.

Molly loves to ride and all I have to say is "Do you want to go for a ride?" and she gets all excited. We got there kind of early but there were still several people in the park with dogs, people jogging, two small children playing on the playground, and there was even a soccer game going on, complete with referees tweeting their whistles ever so often. That is how a park is supposed to be.

I try to steer Molly away from other dogs because of her attitude towards other dogs but that is the good thing about a park, there is usually enough room for everyone. Molly was able to pee on everything in sight and she even took a healthy one under one of the trees. They had just put down some cedar mulch in the park around the shrubs and trees and I love that smell.

We made it out of there without a jogger getting bit or another doggie brawl breaking out so I decided to provide Molly with a treat and made a Bojangle's run. Molly is a hit at just about every drive thru I go thru. She loves the smell of fast food...

Back From The Kennel Day Two

This is Day Number Two of Molly's return from the kennel. She is starting to ease back into her routine although she is still sleeping alot. She actually let me sleep until 6:15 this morning before rousting me up to take her out for her morning constitutional.

She still remembers how to bury her dog biscuits in the couch cushions and that she gets a Munchy Bone first thing in the morning. She still won't let me out of her sight so luckily I have a few more days before I have to go back to work.

Molly Is Back Part II

After we got home this morning, Molly did a very brief tour of the neighborhood since she hasn't been here in almost a week, left a little bit of pee in strategic locations, and we went inside the house.

Once inside the house, Molly made a quick inspection to make sure I hadn't had another dog in the house (an offense punishable by the death penalty), gave her one of her favorite treats (Ol' Roy Munchy Bones from Wal~Mart), and then she immediately sought out her pet pillow so she could catch up on some sleep.

That was her agenda for the rest of the day. Sleep and eat. She really didn't even want to go outside. She also would not let me out of her sight. If I changed rooms, she changed rooms. I put her out in her lot while I mowed the yard but that was about the highlight of her activity. She was so glad to be back.

Molly Is Back Part I

I went and picked up Molly from Paw Pleasers kennel this morning at about 9:10 and she and I couldn't be happier. I was nervous about picking her up and was hoping she was in a forgiving mood for putting her there any way but it was the best place for her while I was out of town.

When the lady went back to get her I could hear Molly charging down the back hallway,panting and straining at her leash. She knew I was there to pick her up. I had already settled our account so we were ready to roll. She was jumping up and down, she even jumped up on another customer which is unusual for her, but she was just happy to be sprung. She looked like she had lost weight and somehow looked alot smaller in stature, but there was no doubt that it was Molly.

We had a slight problem as we were trying to get out the door as we ran into a lady coming in the gate with her two dogs. It was a dog thing with some snapping, snarling, and the exchanging of some growls, but no harm,no foul.

It took Molly a few minutes to get her bearings in the car but within a couple of miles, she had assumed her customary stance, front paws on the console, back paws on the backseat, and eyes forward, leaning on my shoulder as we went into the curves. She was back!

Checking On Molly

I called Paw Pleasers yesterday afternoon to check on Molly and they said she was fine and a "sweet girl" (are they sure that was Molly?) but they said she wasn't eating well which I expected that. She always loses about 5 pounds when she is in the kennel. The girl on the phone also told me she doesn't like other dogs too well and she really doesn't like people either. That is my fault and I take full responsibility for that. I did a very poor job of socializing her when she was a puppy and that may be very well why she has the diva attitude she does today.

Missing The Molly

I have to admit it. I miss my dog. Over the course of the past 5 years she has been the one constant in my life I could depend on. She has always been there for me and has never refused to help me out or to listen to me. We have talked about everything. She says it all with a simple "Wwwooooof." That conveys a sense of understanding that is lost on most people. It also doubles as advice. It is great advice.

What do I do about work? Woof. What do I do about my marital problems? Woof. What do I do about my in-laws? Woof-Woof. (That required extra emphasis). What do I do about my financial problems? Woof and just make sure we can afford dog treats. That one word has so much meaning. What does your woof mean?

The Kennel

I am going out of town for a few days and had to put Molly in Paw Pleasers Kennel yesterday. The Paw Pleasers Staff runs a great facility and are very professional and I do not trust that many people with my dog.

I knew Molly wasn't going to take this news well so I took her to Fletcher Park yesterday morning as kind of a special treat and she thoroughly enjoyed herself. She got to pee, sniff, growl and woof to her hearts content and she reallhy wore herself out. About two hours later, I loaded her up in the car and we headed towards the kennel.

Molly was so thrilled that she was going to be getting to ride twice in one day but that quickly evaporated when I pulled into the driveway of Paw Pleasers. I do not not know anything about the memory capacity of a dog but she remembered Paw Pleasers and it had been about a year since she had been there.

She starts growling and giving her "wwwoooof" in her low, gutteral growl-bark. The last place she wanted to go was inside the gate but I finally got her in the door. Molly has a copper-colored overcoat that runs in a stripe right down the middle of her back. Whenever Molly is upset or threatened by something, this stripe stands straight up and it looks like a Mohawk. As soon as one of the Paw Pleasers personnel greeted us, the Mohawk formed and I thought "this may get ugly". The young lady took her on back and I was able to rest a little easier knowing she was in good hands.

Molly And Thunderstorms

We had a thunderstorm the other day and Molly reminded me how much she dislikes those moments when Mother Nature voices her displeasure at mankind.

When we heard the first clap of thunder, Molly came over and sat beside me. When we saw the first bolt of lightning, Molly got in between my legs and underneath the chair. We resembled a white, hairy pretzel. When the house started shaking from the thunder and lightning strikes, Molly would have squeezed her 50 pound body into one of the pockets of my shorts if she could have. I had to pet her and reassure her that if lightning was going to strike, that I would make sure I was the one that was it. We all need some reassurances once in a while.