Tag: dogs

Posted in dogs, Life

Water adventure at the dog park

Posted on by William Douthwaite

While the dogs were delighted, we were horrified when someone opened the gate and two of our three dogs got into the pond.

We usually only have two dogs, but we were also watching my daughter’s older dog. The dog park surrounds a fenced-in pond populated by turtles, snakes, fish, and no doubt a gator or two. A couple of gates provide access, but I’ve never seen a dog in there.

Until that day. A gentleman with an Irish setter and some kind of terrier opened the gate for them, and two of our dogs eagerly followed. My daughter’s dog, an eleven-year old lab mix spotted a tennis ball in the lake, jumped in, and swam to get it. Her hips are a little stiffer, but she could still swim! And then she wanted someone to throw it back in so she could swim some more.

Our Westie is not a swimmer, but ran around the lake, yapping at the swimming dog, turtles, and fish, and lapping at the murky water.

What about our Great Dane? She didn’t get through the gate, but ran around the outside of the fence, woofing at everyone inside.

Once in the pond enclosure, there was no getting them out. In and out of the water and around the lake, they got wet, dirty, and had the time of their lives. A lady grabbed a few dog biscuits from her car, but our dogs weren’t interested.

After about half an hour, I positioned myself on the bank and waited for them to run by. Once they were distracted by water and a ball, I grabbed each by the collar and ended their water play.

The dogs had fun, the van smelled like wet dog for a while, and they all took good naps when we got home.

Posted in dogs

Is that the biggest size you have?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I was getting ready to ship my dogs out to some pet sitters for our trip to Hawaii. Twelve days away meant sending a lot of food with them.

So loaded up my Walmart cart with small, medium, and large bags of dry chicken and rice kibble, An eight pound bag would be plenty for the Westie. He only eats one third of a cup twice a day. I needed a fifteen pound bag for a few days at home and the first few days away for the Great Dane. Then I needed to drop off a forty pound bag at her second home away from home for the final week of our trip. She consumes a lot more food: eight cups a day.

I pushed my sixty-plus pound cart to a long but quickly moving self check out lane. Finally, a register opened up and I reached for a scanning gun to check out. But there was no gun at the end of the wire.

Great. Now I have to wrestle all the bags onto the scanner. Alright, this is why I work out. Let’s do this. The eight pound bag is easy. Fifteen pounds? I only needed one hand. The forty pound bag was tough. The bag is big, floppy, and constantly shape-changing. I was so happy when I heard the beep as I wrestled it onto the scanner.

Like I said, this is why I work out. So I can have a giant dog and toss around giant bags of food.

Posted in dogs, running, walking

Don’t worry about me. Just go.

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Alex Radelich on Unsplash

She stopped right in the middle of the road.

I shouted, “What are you doing?” I actually shouted that to the Great Dane who was, for once, obediently sitting next to me. We were just waiting for the traffic to pass so we could cross the street and continue our walk.

But this lady decided to stop. Right in the middle of the road. Right in the middle of a busy street.

Okay, let me explain. I’m a city boy. I grew up in suburban Philadelphia. You don’t walk out in front of traffic. Not if you don’t want to die. But here in Florida, people do it all the time. I know, pedestrians have the right of way. But that’s assuming pedestrians have looked both ways to see if any cars are coming.

The rules are different in Florida. I blame Walmart. In front of their store, cars have to stop for people walking through the striped areas of the parking lot. I watch many walk out without a glance for oncoming cars. I’m not so brave. I wait. I let them go. I don’t trust them. (I don’t trust anyone.) I’m not going to walk in front of any car, assuming it will stop for me.

So we are out for our morning walk. The Great Dane and I have crossed to the middle island of the four lane parkway that runs north and south through our city. She is doing well today. She sits next to me as we wait for the traffic to pass. I am ready to say, “Heel,” as the last car in a pack goes by. But the car slows and comes to a stop. Really? Just like that, when other cars are zipping by?

I’m not falling for that. We’re staying put. I simply look away, as if I don’t notice them at all. I’ll wait. I’ve got all day. Finally, they drive off, and we can cross the road.

I’ve had this problem running, too. I am pacing myself, waiting for a car to pass, and they slow down or stop. They think they are doing me a favor. I chuckle, and run around behind them. Just drive your car. Don’t worry about me. Just go.

I’ve run and biked enough miles that I know how to avoid people who aren’t paying attention, couldn’t care less, and probably shouldn’;t be driving anyway. You live longer when you’ve got some situational awareness and don’t trust anyone.

Posted in dogs

Field trip: the dog wash

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Most of our dogs have loved the water. Gabriel (Labrador retriever) would happily leap in any body of water, from lake to ocean, to retrieve a ball or a stick. Samson (German shepherd mix) loved to run through muddy, rain-filled swales along our neighborhood streets. Winston (Westie) will chase water squirted from a hose all afternoon. Yesterday, we couldn’t keep him out of the surf.

We’ve never had a dog who didn’t like the water. Until now. Except for long, sloppy drinks, Willow (Great Dane) has no use for water. She runs away from a squirt from the hose. She prefers to keep her distance from the ocean. She’s curious about the shower, but only through a glass door.

What about bath time? Willow’s not a fan. When she was smaller, we could leash her to the fence in the backyard and force her to bathe. But at eighty pounds, I’m afraid she’ll bring the fence down.

So yesterday’s field trip was to the Salty Dogs DIY dog wash. It shares a building with a BP station. The shop is equipped with four dog wash stations. You don’t need a reservation. Just walk in, tether your dog in a station, bathe, rinse, and let them shake water all over in a place that’s not your bathroom.

Willow knew something was going on. Even with the lure of treats, it took two of us to push her up the ramp into the tub. Once we had her tethered to a hand rail, I hugged her while my wife soaked her down and then sprayed her with soap. I grabbed a nearby bottle of shampoo and added more so we could each wash an end. After a nice rinse, Willow didn’t mind the blow dry. Her short hair dries very quickly. She was more than happy to bounce out of the tub all by herself.

While I paid for our visit, which included all the water, soap, and towels we needed, Willow knocked over a bucket full of rawhide bones, scattering them across the floor. For her efforts, they gave her a free one and let us bring one home for Winston, too.

A visit to this dog wash is $20, but it was Tuesday, so we got the $16 special. We may join the Tub Club, which is $24.95 a month for unlimited washes. They also have groomers and a full menu of services. It’s a cool little place, and beats going through the car wash with the windows open and Willow in the passenger seat.

Posted in dogs

Come on, let’s see what you’ve got!

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Two unlikely opponents faced off in this morning’s tug-of-war championship.

“Ladies and gentlemen, in the white corner, hailing from the Tar Heel state of North Carolina, weighing in at twenty-two pounds, let’s hear it for Winstonnnnnnn the West Highlands White Terrier!”

“And in the tan corner, from Ocala, Florida, weighing in at eighty pounds, give it up for Willoooooooow the Great Dane!”

It’s a pretty unusual matchup. If Winston had a wrestling hero, it would be Rowdy Roddy Piper. Willow would be more of an Andre the Giant fan. Echoes of David and Goliath here.

All I have to do is toss the triple knotted blue rope out into the yard and they’re at it. There’s round after round of growling and tugging. But there’s no clear winner. Winston holds his own against an opponent four times bigger than he is. Willow finds it amusing that this little guy thinks he has a chance.

The contest ends in a draw when someone spots a squirrel and they team up to chase it off the fence. With a low center of gravity, Winston isn’t easy to budge. Willow is all muscle, easily able to hold her ground. It is so much fun to watch these two go at it.

I don’t know if Winston realizes that Willow isn’t done growing yet. He probably doesn’t care. The bigger they are, the harder they fall, right?

Posted in dogs

“I think I’ll have a cheeseburger.”

Posted on by William Douthwaite

My across-the-street neighbor was having a garage sale yesterday morning. Sadly, he’s selling his home and moving to be closer to family. He’s been a good friend and trusted neighbor for twenty years.

His daughter had come to help him and I knew she was a lover of dogs. She used to foster Labrador retrievers, but has downsized to French bulldogs as of late. I leashed up our six month old Great Dane puppy to go over and say hi.

Our eighty-pound puppy got a warm reception, but she found all the items out on the driveway very interesting. Especially a box with some old dog toys in it. She sniffed around for a bit and finally came out with this stuffed cheeseburger in her mouth.

God choice. It included all the fixings, was in pretty good shape, and the squeaker still worked! As they say, one dog’s trash is another dog’s treasure.

With her new toy in mouth, she was ready to go. We stayed a few more minutes as her wagging tail betrayed her joy, and then headed home.

As humans, we think that one dog toy is as good as the next. Not true. Dogs have their favorites. The cheeseburger arrived at just the right time. Our daughter’s dog, who came for a two-week visit, had chewed the stuffing out of a popular hedgehog and a two-foot long grinning dog. We needed something new, and we needed it now. Enter the cheeseburger.

As good as that cheeseburger looks, it hasn’t satisfied all our chewing needs. Our puppy has developed an appetite vinyl wicker chairs. A few minutes ago, as I was writing this, I caught her chewing on the extension cord I was using to charge the computer. I could have let her learn a shocking lesson, but decided to save her.

“Here. Chew your cheeseburger guy!”

Posted in dogs

That’s not a chew toy? I didn’t get the memo

Posted on by William Douthwaite

I had to put out my sprinklers yesterday for the first time in a long time. It’s been two or three years since I last unwound the blue hose that connects three sprinklers together.

The front yard has been looking great. The back yard not so much. It’s usually the other way around. We haven’t had much rain this spring. Plus we now have two dogs regularly chasing each other around, digging holes, and killing patches of grass with pee.

I don’t have in-ground sprinklers, so I stretch hoses around the yard with oscillating sprinkler heads. These were made of the plastic that gets brittle in the Florida sun. Lizards like to make their homes in my hoses. I wasn’t confident they would work at all, but decided to give it a shot.

To my surprise, they all worked fairly well. I had to adjust the distance on each one, but other than that, the grass got the water it needed. I felt pretty good about. One dog (the Westie) thought the streams of water were great fun. The other (the Great Dane) wasn’t sure this was a good idea.

When I turned my sprinkler system on today, each shot out a narrow stream rather than a broad spray of water. No problem. I know how to adjust them. Unfortunately, each was missing a piece. Someone, who either didn’t like or really liked the sprinklers, chewed off the little tab that regulated the spray. Rather than eating the evidence, the guilty canine left chewed up plastic pieces in front of each. Thanks a lot, guys.

On to plan B. I’ve got a few metal oscillating sprinklers in the garage. They should thwart any overzealous chewers. They don’t do as well in series, so I’ll probably have to run two hoses to cover the thirstiest stretches of lawn.

I’m impressed that dogs always find new ways to get into trouble. In fact, as I’ve been writing this, the big one garped up some blue and red strings from a tug-o-war rope she’s been working on today. Lovely. Time to retire that toy. And then while they were outside regurgitating, they chased Mrs. Cardinal out of a bush where she was hiding. She was not happy. The dogs thought it was great fun.

Posted in dogs

No, you’re not getting a ride

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Japheth Revelo on Unsplash

We take our dogs for a lot of walks, typically once in the morning and then again in the evening. Rather than letting them wrestle on the sofa, we’re willing to put in the miles so that the Great Dane and the Westie can burn off some energy.

Yesterday we passed a woman and her chihuahua we’ve seen many times. This time, though, she was carrying the dog. He couldn’t have weighed more than three pounds, so she could manage. I’m sure there are good reasons why you would carry rather than walk your dog. Like hip problems or hot asphalt. After she turned the corner, our big dog’s eyes seemed to say, “How come you never carry me?”

I knew what she was thinking and said, “Forget it. You weigh sixty pounds and you’re only five months old!”

Another person we often see on our walks pushed her small dog in a stroller. The look on his face said, “Suckers!” Once again, I got a glance from the Great Dane.

“Forget it. Even if they did make a stroller that big, I’m not sure I could push you very far.”

Towards the end of a walk, we came up on a woman pushing a fussy toddler in a stroller. Once the little girl caught a glimpse of our dogs, she stopped screaming and pointed. However as we got closer her eyes got bigger when she saw just how big the doggie was. I told my wife, it’s just a matter of time before the question, “Can we pet your dog?” become, “Can we ride your dog?”

And then, on our way to walking out and back over a bridge, we wondered, “Do you think they make car seats big enough for a Great Dane?” We’ve seen some nice ones that keep smaller dogs from scrambling from the back seat to the front.

I said, “I don’t think they make a big enough car!” Good thing the van has a sun roof. And it’s good to be in Florida where it’s easy to get out walking year round.

Posted in Life

The magic of the dawn

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Even the dogs noticed how loudly the birds were singing. The cardinals led today’s chorus, greeting the dawn with such enthusiasm that both dogs looked up with curiosity. I’ll bet they wondered, “Who else is up this early?” A few blocks away, mourning doves called back and forth. Bluebirds chirped from the overhead wires.

The air was still as the neighborhood came alive with sound. The smallest bit of orange tinted the eastern horizon. I saw one light in the sky, a planet. The stars had called it a night.

We left the house about 6 am. Lots of outdoor lights were on, but the insides of most of the houses were still dark. Less than a quarter mile down the road we pass a home that is bathed in blue light. Blue lights are on either side of the front door, line the driveway, and shine up into the trees. Yes, I can tell you support law enforcement.

We’ve walked a mile and a half before the first car passes, doing at least 50 on this long, straight stretch of road. Probably a preacher, anxious to get to church and practice his sermon. The truck that slowly pulls into a driveway is someone getting home from work. It’s tough to work an overnight shift.

Some people still have cans lying on the front lawn two days after trash collection. There are seven cars parked in a circular driveway in front of another home. They must have a lot of guests for the weekend. A pile of wood from a discarded fence is still piled on the curb. I wonder when someone will haul that away.

About forty minutes into our walk, we notice the squirrels and bunnies. I notice the blue, cloudless sky. When did daytime get here? When did the night sneak away? That moment is part of the magic of the dawn.