A video for the dog lovers out there

River’s tough day

Breakfast is an early affair for River, mostly because his sister, Ocean, is full of beans and won’t sleep past 6 am no matter how many times you explain to her that it’s the weekend.

Breakfast! Yum!

Breakfast is gone in under a minute and this morning, since it included rice, it didn’t last past the 30 second mark.

Time for a nap

Afterwards, of course, it’s time for a much needed nap. Eating so early takes a lot out of poor, sadly-neglected River. But mom doesn’t think he should spend the day sleeping, and she’s insisting on a walk. Sheesh.

A walk? At this hour? Well, make it a short one, will you?

One walk later, it’s definitely time to rest…except River sees mom cooking and that means scavenging for what little crumbs might fall to the ground in the kitchen.

If you give me a little treat, I won’t tell Ocean

Obviously, that’s a full day for his fluffiness and a rest is well deserved. Once mommy is done in the kitchen, it’s time for that nap. Better still, a nap by her feet, so he’s within petting distance.

What a day!

Thankfully, supper is next, so that he can replenish his strength…but what’s this? Mom decided to have two walks today! Ocean is over the moon, of course, but she’s always been a little nutty. Two walks is exhausting for poor River and it’ll take him days to recuperate from the ordeal.

At least there’s supper! Phew!

Finally, finally, he can rest and take it easy from his very tough day.

Zzzz

A tale of two dog beds

Once upon a time there were two dog owners who were…well, a little nuts. They meant well, in their crazy little minds, but they were two raisins short of a fruit cake. So, when they went out to get their dogs new beds, they…well, they lost what little sanity they had left.

First, they already had two dogs beds. But they were old and getting lumpy, so they had to go.

Then they got two new dog beds.

Since their dogs weren’t too keen on them. Our two little loonie birds decided higher quality was needed and the beds went back to the store.

They got new, orthopaedic beds made with special foam. It seemed that since the dogs spent all day doing absolutely nothing, they needed to rest in special comfort at night.

Since, these were greeted with delight by the doggies, our two heroes finally could put their quest to rest.

Feel free to roll your eyes and shake your heads in exasperation now.

 

Where River shocks me

Since we live with two fluffy, spoiled akitas, we try to be responsible dog owners. When we got our home, one of the first things we did was put up a fence. We then build a designed dog-house for our pooches, complete with shingles, doors and raised floor (of course, they refuse to use it). When we walk our trusted doggies, we take them on leashes and bring bags to pick up the unmentionables.

The fence is a big deal for me and so are the leashes. I know we’re not perfect dog-parents, but I could not forgive myself if my dog got run over by a car or bit someone because I didn’t put up a fence or because I let them wonder off-leash.

That’s why it’s so hard for me to understand why other people let their dogs wonder unsupervised.

We do live in the country and things are more relaxed here. Still, the law says that dogs have to be on-leash and behind fences. However, there have been many a time when we’ve been walking that a strange dog has come wondering towards us. Usually, one word from me sends the dog back to their home…Usually.

Yesterday, we were walking our two wonder-dogs when there was a blur and a strange dog was on top of Ocean, growling.

I screamed (terribly useful, I know), my hubby stared in shock and River attacked. He only got to bite the dog once. But it was enough. With a yelp of pain, the strange dog ran off while I was still trying to understand what had happened.

River. Attacked the other dog.

This is the dog that loves kisses, that follows me around everywhere (even to the shower), that loves cheese and cucumbers, that hates shouts and loves to watch animals on TV. He’s more of a fluffy teddy bear than any other dog I have ever had. When I feed him a treat, he takes it with his lips so as to avoid hurting my fingers. He hates it when I leave the house and gives me the saddest look of reproach. He sleeps at my side and would sleep on the bed if I let him.

River, snuggling into his bed

River watching TV

River asking for kisses and snuggles

 

River attacked the strange dog.

I’m still in shock.

No matter what I think of the law or people’s choice of care with their pets, I was concerned that the other dog might have been injured. I suggested trying to follow it home and see if it was okay. My hubby canned that suggestion explaining that taking our two akitas after the strange dog was definitely not a good idea.

Today, River is back to his snuggly, loving self. I’m still trying to process what happened.