“What kind of dog did you say you were again?” The canine asking that question has his nose pressed a little too close to a delicate area of my body.
“I am a dachshund,” I say and scoot away from him. “My name is Oliver.”
“Why is your body so long?” The other dog sits on his rump and begins scratching his ears.
“Because that’s the way a dog of my breeding is shaped.” I’m starting to get a little annoyed with this dog. For that last 30 minutes, he’s been following me around, asking the silliest questions and totally interrupting my play time. I suppose I could be more patient, but it’s not like Trudy and Olivia take me here every day. This is a rare treat!
Today I am socializing with other dogs. I just hadn’t realized that not all dogs are…well…as smart as I am. Sadly, some of them seem to be playing with less than a full deck of cards. Like this dog who keeps following me around.
“What did you say your name was?” I asked, watching him pull something out of his ear.
“It’s Ava,” he says and then smiles. “I’m a boy.”
“Yeah, I kind of figured that. What’s up with the girl name?”
“My owners were thinking they were going to adopt a girl dog. They’d already told their little one that I was a female Labrador. That kid hollered something fierce when she found out I was a boy and insisted on calling me Ava anyway. That was the name she’d already picked out.” Ava scratched at his ears again. “I don’t mind much. It’s a good conversation starter.”
“I see. Um, Ava, when was the last time you had a bath?” I couldn’t help but notice how dusty his black coat was.
“Well, now, let’s see.” He sat back on his haunch and gave me a thoughtful look. “Today is Tuesday so that means….hang on…math’s not my strong point…yep, it was four months ago.”
Four months? Wow. What was his secret? Since I don’t care for baths, I had to know!
“The trick is to roll in the grass after a nice rain. Then all the dust comes off and you get a nice outdoorsy smell. Problem is, it hasn’t rained in a while. I expect that means I’m due for a dousing in the wash tub pretty soon.” Ava smiled and I could see that a few of his teeth were black.
“And your teeth? Looks like you’ve got a couple of bad ones in there,” I said.
“Yep. My owner’s aren’t big on dog hygiene. They don’t like to brush my teeth. Hurts to eat sometimes, but I get it down!” Ava rolled over on his back and began to roll around.
I have to admit that it looked like fun so I did it, too. We made quite a picture: one big black dog with huge paws and a handsome, red wiener dog with floppy ears rolling around on our backs. A couple of kids pointed and laughed.
“Ava!” A woman called and he smiled at me before galloping over to her. “Good boy! Time to go!”
Ava barked goodbye to me and I wagged my tail, watching him walk off with his owner. As he trotted away, I couldn’t help but wonder if his non bathing tactics would work for me. It might be worth a try later.
“Mommy, look at Oliver.” Olivia’s voice floats above the barking of the other dogs at the park. I wag my tail at the sound of it. “What’s he doing now?”
I have spotted a very striking canine a few yards away. Though no eye contact has been made, I can tell she is a girl dog. Her diamond collar sparkles in the sunlight, and she tosses her blond colored hair in a way that is extremely pleasing to the eye. I make my way over to her as suavely as I can, clearing my throat to get her attention.
“Hey there,” I say. She turns around and sniffs at me. Her tail wags back and forth, a hypnotic curl of fur. “Want to roll in the dirt with me?”
“Um…I really shouldn’t. I just came back from being groomed,” she says.
I look down and notice that her nails are a bright shade of pink.
“You are so fancy,” I say. “What kind of dog are you?”
“They call me a Pomeranian. How old are you?”
“Fifteen weeks.” My chest swells up with pride and I give her my best smile.
“Oh dear. I only like older dogs. Sorry. I can’t roll in the dirt with you. Call me when you reach the year mark.” She trots off, looking very prim and dainty.
Oh well. You can’t win them all.
I am climbing over a small obstacle course in the park when my attention is drawn to a huge wolf-like creature. Curious, I move towards this new dog. Its eyes are a pale shade of blue, and the coat of fur it wears is gray and white. There is a black bump under its eye and a scar across the nose. This is the most interesting dog I’ve ever seen.
“Hi,” I say to it. “I’m Oliver.”
“I’m Nikki,” she responds and her voice is soft and smooth. “Nice to meet you.”
She has good manners! At last, an equal.
“What sort of dog are you?” I ask.
She huffs out a breath, like she is bored with the question, and says, “I’m a Husky. No, I’m not a wolf. Yes, my coat is hot. No, you may not touch my tail.”
How does she know those are exactly the questions in my head?
“Listen, kiddo, are you going to just stand there and stare at me, or are you going to let me by so I can get some exercise in?” She shakes her head at me. “How old are you, anyway?”
“Fifteen weeks, ma’am.”
“Ma’am? You have manners. How rare.”
“My mother, Schatze, brought me up right.”
“Who are your owners?”
“Those two. Over there.”
Nikki looks Trudy and Olivia over carefully. Something in her eyes makes me think she has had a lot of experience with owners. She tilts her head to the side, as Trudy drapes an arm around Olivia and whispers something in her ear. Olivia smiles.
“You’ve got some good ones,” Nikki says. “Hope you can hang on to them.”
“Why wouldn’t I be able too?”
“Not sayin’ you can’t, kid, but take it from someone who’s been around the block a few times. Good owners are important. You gotta treat them right.” Nikki’s eyes look sad for a moment, but then she gives a full body stretch. When I see her face again, she is serene.
“How many owners have you had?” I ask, trying to stretch like she did.
“Five.”
Five? Five! That’s crazy. How could that happen?
“I’m a bit on the ornery side.” Nikki answers my unspoken question. “Had some trouble following directions. The little things always caused me a problem. I didn’t like baths. Who would with all this fur? Not crazy about being brushed or having my teeth cleaned. Sometimes I chewed things up if no one was paying me any attention. I’ve made some bad choices in life and been in too many animal shelters.”
“What about now?”
Nikki looks over at the man standing at the side of the fence. He is tall with a light hair and a beard. He watches Nikki, a slight smile on his face.
“He’s a good one. I’m doing what I can to keep him. I’m fourteen now. That’s way too old to be homeless.”
I nod my head as if I understand everything she has said, but I’m a little confused about what an animal shelter is. Nikki apparently senses this.
“Don’t worry, kiddo. Just be a good pup, and you ‘ll always be safe and warm.”
She wanders off, but I don’t follow her. Instead, I sit in the sun and let the warmth of it wash over me. I look around at all the dogs, seeing them in a new light. I wonder if any of them have been in a shelter or have had different owners.
I can’t imagine not living with Trudy and Olivia. They do take care of me, and even the things that must be a pain for them to do—like brushing my teeth, taking me to the vet, giving me a bath—are all signs they care about me. Funny, I never saw it that way before. I’d always figured they were trying to torture me!
But now as I look at them, my tail wags uncontrollably. Olivia calls my name and a sense of relief and gratefulness fills me. I gallop to them, my heart full because I know they love me.
I love them, too.
So maybe I’ll go easier on them next time when they want to give me a bath.
Maybe.
*****
(…to be continued)
Related posts:
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Gets First Aid
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Chews
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Explores
- Puppy Tails – Bathing with Oliver
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Gets Lost
