Dogged

If you can look at a dog and not feel vicarious excitement and affection, you must be a cat. ~Author Unknown

It's been raining and/or ugly for two day, which in and of itself isn't necessarily a bad thing. But when you have a young dog who is a bundle of energy and you can't expend some of that energy? Then things get a little crazy.

One day, she can deal with, but we hit day two yesterday (not really raining, but gale force winds and COLD, so we couldn't walk) and I knew I had to do something. So we piled the dog into the car and headed out to her favorite places.

We started with Agway, where we got grass fertilizer and she got lots of love and dog bones (and where I argued with the head helper about whether you catch and drown rodents, or catch and release -- she was telling our shared FedEx guy how to deal with a rat in his woodpile. I got a bit... *ahem*... vehement, but no blows were exchanged).

Next, we opted to take the time to go way the heck out of our way and hit Petco. Now, it used to be that the Petco employees spoiled Dakota rotten. It used to be they walked around with a bag of treats hooked to their pants so they could treat and pet all the dogs. She loved going there. But the last couple of times, things haven't been as much fun for her. In fact, the last time, she went through the check out line, sat pretty and waited for the treat they ALWAYS give her (and I even said something about her waiting for her treat) and they guy looked at her and then turned back, took my money and helped the next person, totally ignoring the dog.

Could YOU ignore this face?



Yesterday we saw no fewer than four employees who passed close enough to pat the dog, one even had to step out of our way to avoid her, and not one (NOT ONE) even acknowledged her presence, let alone patted her.

Worse, the three people there who had dogs wanted nothing to do with letting their dogs interact with her. One even seemed as though they though Dakota was going to eat their little shitz tsu (as if... please) and would yank the dog violently away whenever we were in view. Sadly, THEIR dog seemed very interested in playing.

I left without buying anything, even though I will typically get something for the dog when we go... treats, a chewy, a toy.

But DD and I were so angry by the time we left, we were spitting nails. Maybe a stupid thing to get upset about, but it's like taking your kid to a party and having them treated like a pariah.

I emailed Petco when I got home. And, I most likely won't be back to their store -- that's the third time in a row we haven't had a good experience.

==================

I talked to the lady whose Border Collie was attacked last week. He was so sad... slithered into agility class and then wrapped himself around my legs and just shook. I told her I was sorry about butting in with her dog, and she said, "NO. Don't be. I just froze." So, phew. It's all good.

We spent agility class trying to get him to be a little less cowed. He wanted to stay hiding under the chairs -- the room has a bad memory for him, and he was fine outside of it, but not in. Poor thing.

We also discussed the Great Dane with the instructor -- my complaint was that they never correct the dog, and the Border Collie's mom was frustrated that they didn't seem to be taking responsibility for their dog's bad behavior. They never even went to her to apologize that night last week.

The thing is, he's not a bad-tempered dog. Most Great Danes are just HUGE pussycats, and he's no exception. His problem is two-fold: he's not altered and he's not being told what is proper behavior.

The Border Collie's mom is on vacation the next two Thursdays, so won't be in the beginning class. Hopefully things will settle down by the time she's back.

====================

Did some writing on the sequel to "Kitchen Matches" yesterday (tentatively entitled "Now and Forever"). I've been struggling because it's not as funny on paper as it is in my head and every word I write has been an ordeal. But I decided to just push on through and then submit the first chapter to my writing group (who are going to think I'm schizophrenic, because I keep submitting things from different WIPs!) and see what they think. If they think it's dry as dirt, I'll go from there. Sometimes I think we can't judge our own work very well.

======================

I just realized I forgot to plant my seeds yesterday!! OH NO. That's first on my agenda this morning. Oh happy days, gardening season has begun.

======================

You Are Chocolate Chip Cookies

You are all American and down to earth. You tend to stick to the classics ... you can't go wrong with them. You have an eye for quality, and you are probably an accomplished baker. And you never skimp on real butter and eggs. Your friends can always count on you to be consistent and loyal. You are true to the end. You are sweet because you take time to do things right. You are thoughtful in all of your actions.

What Bake Sale Favorite Are You?

Hmmm... mostly right.

=================