Life with Charlie: the Adventure
Every day with Charlie is like an adventure. Being young, you never know exactly what he'll do, how he will react, or what he will find lurking in the corners. But one thing is constant: his love and devotion and his "friendship" with the other dogs in our community.
We have the equivalent of the "Midnight Patrol" at our place. Do you remember the "midnight howl" in Lady and the Tramp? Where the dogs all howl to communicate what's going on where they live? One howls, the other responds, another chimes in and so on? We have the "Midnight Patrol" here. One dog starts yipping, another yaps in response, a third one barks and then the games begin. Sometimes it sounds like a regular chorus, something out of a "Christmas Dogs" album, only without the musical touches.
Charlie has learned to respond from a spoken command from the bedroom, after I flew out of the bedroom a couple of times when he first started yapping at night. Now, when I yell for him to "give it a rest!" he gives one more muffled "mmph" of a bark and settles down to sleep, his duty done. He is a good watchdog; I just wish it did sound quite so loud at 12 midnight or 1 am! He's learning.
He also understands what I mean when I tell him "We're going to get the mail" or "Let's go to the garbage!" He usually heads in the right direction without being pulled that way, unless a dog distracts him, of course. The cutest thing is that he now looks in my eyes and listens when I talk to him. The other evening, I was telling him "no doggies" because he heard barking on TV and that set him off. He cocked his head one way, then the other, a few times before coming to sit on the ottoman and watch TV with me. I do love it when dogs do that!
And what am we learning? To take cues from him. There was a break-in for the first time in many years in our community, and the dogs alerted neighbors to chase the perpetrator away. Good dogs! We stop more to "smell the roses" (or the cut grass, or enjoy the shade, or talk to neighbors) now that we have him. Everyone has a story to tell and it's good to catch up on the latest scoop from around the complex. We're adjusting to life with dog, as in: " Ok, we can go to three places this evening, but after that we have to go home because Charlie - and Munchie - will have to go to the bathroom by then" or "If we go on vacation, would it be best to take Charlie with us camping or to a cabin, or to put him in Petsmart's Pet Hotel" (the one that Brandi, our previous dog loved so much). It also includes getting him treats when we go bulk grocery shopping, or looking for a cute new interesting item for him or Munchie when we are out and about. Mike's also learned to drive and hold the leash when he comes to pick me up at work - the matter of a 3 minute car ride. I have learned, again, to enjoy the sight of a little furry face smiling at me when they come to get me.
We have learned that every dog is different, even when they seem the same. They make different sounds (Chewie whines as he walks when he sees Charlie, while Charlie kind of grunts. Buster huffs and snorts and Bella flies like the wind). Big dogs love to play as much as little ones, only they tend to bowl the little ones over. It is possible to get wrapped up in a leash and not fall down, just look ridiculous standing there all dolled up with leash like a Christmas tree. We have learned to do the "lasso" move with the leash, rotating it over our heads when Charlie decides to have a good run on the green. And yes, we are already thinking about how much fun Christmas will be with him in the house. Mike's even talking about putting the Darth Vader costume on Charlie this Halloween and going trick or treating... Sure, Mike....
(next article: Charlie at the park)
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| A hot dog on the deck |
We have the equivalent of the "Midnight Patrol" at our place. Do you remember the "midnight howl" in Lady and the Tramp? Where the dogs all howl to communicate what's going on where they live? One howls, the other responds, another chimes in and so on? We have the "Midnight Patrol" here. One dog starts yipping, another yaps in response, a third one barks and then the games begin. Sometimes it sounds like a regular chorus, something out of a "Christmas Dogs" album, only without the musical touches.
Charlie has learned to respond from a spoken command from the bedroom, after I flew out of the bedroom a couple of times when he first started yapping at night. Now, when I yell for him to "give it a rest!" he gives one more muffled "mmph" of a bark and settles down to sleep, his duty done. He is a good watchdog; I just wish it did sound quite so loud at 12 midnight or 1 am! He's learning.
He also understands what I mean when I tell him "We're going to get the mail" or "Let's go to the garbage!" He usually heads in the right direction without being pulled that way, unless a dog distracts him, of course. The cutest thing is that he now looks in my eyes and listens when I talk to him. The other evening, I was telling him "no doggies" because he heard barking on TV and that set him off. He cocked his head one way, then the other, a few times before coming to sit on the ottoman and watch TV with me. I do love it when dogs do that!
And what am we learning? To take cues from him. There was a break-in for the first time in many years in our community, and the dogs alerted neighbors to chase the perpetrator away. Good dogs! We stop more to "smell the roses" (or the cut grass, or enjoy the shade, or talk to neighbors) now that we have him. Everyone has a story to tell and it's good to catch up on the latest scoop from around the complex. We're adjusting to life with dog, as in: " Ok, we can go to three places this evening, but after that we have to go home because Charlie - and Munchie - will have to go to the bathroom by then" or "If we go on vacation, would it be best to take Charlie with us camping or to a cabin, or to put him in Petsmart's Pet Hotel" (the one that Brandi, our previous dog loved so much). It also includes getting him treats when we go bulk grocery shopping, or looking for a cute new interesting item for him or Munchie when we are out and about. Mike's also learned to drive and hold the leash when he comes to pick me up at work - the matter of a 3 minute car ride. I have learned, again, to enjoy the sight of a little furry face smiling at me when they come to get me.
We have learned that every dog is different, even when they seem the same. They make different sounds (Chewie whines as he walks when he sees Charlie, while Charlie kind of grunts. Buster huffs and snorts and Bella flies like the wind). Big dogs love to play as much as little ones, only they tend to bowl the little ones over. It is possible to get wrapped up in a leash and not fall down, just look ridiculous standing there all dolled up with leash like a Christmas tree. We have learned to do the "lasso" move with the leash, rotating it over our heads when Charlie decides to have a good run on the green. And yes, we are already thinking about how much fun Christmas will be with him in the house. Mike's even talking about putting the Darth Vader costume on Charlie this Halloween and going trick or treating... Sure, Mike....
(next article: Charlie at the park)
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