Let me go off-topic briefly for another update on Daisy, the puppy that my wife and I adopted from the animal shelter in April.
First shocking news: She’s getting bigger! I mean, who would’ve thought, right? One day you bring home a spindly little four-pound fluff ball with wide eyes and geeky ears, and before you know it you’ve got an eight-pound rascal with a mind of her own, hanging out on street corners … Well, no, not really. But she definitely has a mind of her own.
Fluff happens.
Second shocking news: She’ll eat anything (almost). Likes: Dinner leftovers, cat food, bones, seeds, dried flowers, sticks, mulch, dog feces, cat vomit, bugs, grass. Dislikes: Dog food.
Tbat’s right, the culinary adventurer who can find 50 good things to eat in a pile of garbage can’t find anything good to eat in a bowl of dog kibble. She will sniff it gingerly and then look at you with mournful eyes: “This again?”
We tried about four different kinds of dry food with the same result each time. She would eat it for a week and then gradually lose interest. Then I tried adding some freeze-dried liver treats, which I would sprinkle over her food. Again, it worked for a week. Our latest solution is to mix the dry food with a couple large spoonfuls of moist food. That has worked, more or less, for about three weeks. There are still some times when she will only pick at it and I have to feed her by hand.
Third shocking news: She loves toys. Of course, any detachable or chewable parts will be detached and chewed. Kay bought one “indestructible” toy for ten dollars that lasted for about thirty minutes. So we have quite a collection of eyeless and noseless stuffed animals, but of course Daisy doesn’t care. Squeaky toys are especially good, but so is anything that can be thrown or chased. Which means, it’s all good.
Fourth shocking news: She was born to run. She LOVES running! As proof I offer her first YouTube video:
I apologize for the slightly annoying voice of our neighbor, who owns the black dog in the video (Luna), but as you can tell we were just having a great time watching Daisy cannonball around the parking lot, taking about 100 steps to every one of Luna’s.
Kay and I are looking forward to starting Daisy in agility training when she gets a little bit older. I think she will just eat it up.
Fifth shocking news: The little surprises that are the best. Like the way she gets completely comatose at bedtime and sleeps with her arms extended straight out, like a zombie. The way she insists on riding in the car facing backward. Why doesn’t everyone do it that way? The way she loves strangers. If someone she doesn’t know pets her on the head, she’ll get so excited that she will zoom around in circles for five minutes. She’ll never be a good watch dog, because she doesn’t bark at visitors — but actually that is a blessed relief. The only “visitor” she ever barked at was a raccoon that ventured into our back patio. That time, she went absolutely ballistic.
All in all, she may not be the most perfect, most well-behaved dog, but we are learning to appreciate and love her for who she is.
Look, Ma! I can fly!
P.S. One of my Facebook friends wondered what she is chasing in the photograph. It’s a carrot toy with a green stem made of rope, and she is holding the stem in her mouth. Here is a picture of her that gives you a better look.
What’s orange and squeaks?
OK, that’s the last Daisy update at least for a few months. If you want to keep up with her, please visit her YouTube channel, A Dash of Daisy. It currently has only the one video, but I’m sure that we will be adding more to it as time goes by.
