The Dingo Chronicles

So...I almost got Hunter hit by a car this morning. It wasn't a close call or anything, but it was most certainly my fault that he was nearly in harms way. How could this be, you ask? Because Hunter is too smart...

A few mornings out of the week, Hunter, Wally and I go for a stroll around the neighborhood before the work-day begins. Hunter is such a good boy that I can walk with him off leash. Luckily, he follows voice commands so well that I'm able to put my concentration into wrangling Wally. He's amazingly smart and has such an understanding of the words we speak to him that, in the past, I've wondered if Ty and I have Dr. Doolittle powers (*note...Wally has since dashed this theory).

Two important commands that I employ on walks with Hunter are "Over Here" and "This Side," which means move to my right or my left, respectively. It's so great to be able to have him on one side of me or the other. Typically, I have him move to my right or left to put me in between him and an oncoming car, a dog on the other side of the street, or a tempting treat in the middle of the road. Even if he's not at heel and some distance ahead of me, I can holler out one of these commands and he'll move to the side I need him on.

This morning we were on a stretch of our walk where there are no sidewalks. We had just come off a sidewalked portion on the right side of the road and we were now hugging this side, close to the grass. Hunter was not too far ahead of me when I saw headlights down the road coming towards us. "This Side," I called out to Hunter to get him to move off of the pavement and more into the ditch/grass portion. He held his position and stayed on the pavement. Frustrated that he wasn't listening, I shouted "THIS SIDE, HUNTER!" Now...you might be catching on to why exactly Hunter was not doing as told (do you recall which direction "This Side" refers to?). At this point, Hunter knew what was up and was more than likely thinking to himself "screw you, lady...I ain't doin' that."

Hee-hee...well...I still hadn't caught on and interpreted Hunter's action (or lack of) as disobedience and shouted one last time "THIS - SIDE - HUNTER!!!!" Hunter had to make a choice...face the wrath of an unhappy master or take on the car. He made his decision and swooped LEFT towards the oncoming car. I reacted to his movement with a panicked "HUNTER!!!" and he came back towards me, easily getting out of the way of the car. (Guess this says something about my wrath...he chose to take his chances with the car!!!).

Not a second later, it dawned on me...oh my gosh! I should have been telling him "Over Here" to get him to move to the right! I instantly began apologizing and pampered him with a moment of master-to-dog rump scratching. Hunter flattened his ears in forgiveness and satisfaction and went about his way sniffing and eating snow.

Luckily, the car really wasn't moving fast and slowed down when he saw Hunter's blinky light, so I don't think Hunter was ever really in danger...but it was enough to cause my heart to skip. Hunter Bunter...the smartest dog in the world (and today...smarter than me!).

First off, I must say...how in the world is it December already? And almost the 25th?!?!?!? I can't believe our last post was close to a month ago. Ever since Thanksgiving, the Anderson house-hold has been going non-stop.

A week after our home was filled with the cheer and occasional holiday bark or pant of our dearest families, Ty took off for Boise and a week of training for work. Leaving the "kids" and me to fend for ourselves. Thankfully, our routine wasn't too affected and aside from almost being smothered in my sleep by Wally on numerous occasions, we all managed to still love each other in the end.

The week following Ty's trip to Boise, I was also scheduled to travel to the City of Trees for training and meetings. We decided to take advantage of the chance to spend time together in Boise through the weekend, so I headed for Boise early and took off on Friday.

Yes...this meant Hunter and Wally were in need of a doggy-sitter. Luckily, Mom and Dad came to the rescue and we were able to avoid a boarding fee! Turns out that Mom (or "Grandma" as we sometimes refer to her, for the puppies' sake, of course!) was picked to stay at the house with the dogs...spending Friday and Saturday nights with the circus crew.

She was a trooper...sacrificing her own personal comfort for the contentedness of each dog, as both of them were keen on snuggling up REAL close to her on the couch. She managed to consume food without being forced to share half of it and even managed to speak to us AND go to dinner with us the weekend following her dog-watching stint.

I'd drawn up a set of animal feeding instructions for Mom and included some tips and tricks for getting Wally fed without 1) allowing him to sneak full-mouth bites from his food bucket while she filled his bowl, 2) spilling large quantities of food from the scoop as she guides it from his food bucket to his bowl, and 3)(worst-case scenario) keep him from considering Hunter's food bowl as fair game. Dad came over Saturday afternoon, while Mom was at work and he had just gotten of his shift, to feed Wally. Unfortunately, Dad failed to read the helpful tips and upon opening Wally's food bucket to fill his bowl...aghh...mayhem...Wally dove in head first and started chowing down. Fortunately, he's still a scrawny pup and Dad was able to pull him away from a potentially monstrous feast.

I stayed in Boise up until this past Friday and Ty was home alone with the critters. His routine is much more interrupted when I take a trip, since - with me working from home - the dogs are used to being catered to every moment of a normal day. He ends up playing doggy chauffeur and entertainer for the time I'm away. Each day, the dogs load up in the car and travel with Ty to work. Ty's lunch hour, which typically consists of a solo gym workout, is spent as personal trainer for Hunter and Wally...ensuring they get a decent amount of energy expenditure. At the end of the day, the dogs are hauled back home and once Ty arrives at the house, he's forced to entertain yet another dog fitness session, as they're both wound up from spending an entire afternoon in the car. I would agree that all this sounds a little over-the-top, but with a puppy that's still unreliable and a grown dog that's proven his ability to demolish prized possessions when he's not happy we've left him for long periods of time...we have no choice.

Out of the whole crew, Rosco did manage to show his disapproval of the situation through Kleenex. One-by-one, he tugged a tissue from the box, leaving them strewn across the bathroom floor. He also found a bag of screws and other hardware and ripped through the plastic with his teeth and claws. Proving what? Not really sure. But then...what are we sure about with Rosco?

Needless to say, it's great to be back home and getting back to our routines. The animals have returned to doing what they do best when I'm home working...snoozin' away!