BarkingProse

Mom wouldn’t tell me where we were going. She said it was a surprise. I didn’t care where we went, I just wanted to be with my mom. Just me and her. Lately she’s had to spend a lot of time with the other dogs. She says I have more confidence and I’m not so needy. When somebody has to stay behind to babysit the new dog, it’s usually me.

We took off early. It was already sunny. After a few hours we came to a fairgrounds. There were horses and other dogs and then I saw him – my little brother Zag! We started yipping and jumping and carrying on. The people around us were laughing.

Before I knew what was happening we were in the car together. There was a lake and we got to play ball and swim for hours. It was so much fun.

People say Zag and me are like twins. I don’t know. He has a longer nose and is scared of laundry. I’m more stocky and am scared of sudden noises. We’re both pretty easy going.

Zag got on the wrong side of Tess last time he stayed with us. We got to get that worked out next time he comes to visit.

I gotta show you one last picture. Zag has this tiny little brother named Rhett. Here he is at the lake with us. He’s small but he’s brave. He even went swimming when his mom put him in the water. Maybe we can find him a little ball he can fetch.

When we were so tired we could hardly swim anymore, Zag and Rhett went back to the fairgrounds and I rode home with Mom. We stopped and got me a burger – no onions. I slept until the car pulled into the driveway. The other dogs sniffed me all over. They knew I’d had a special day. In fact, it was magic. I’ll remember this day for a long time. See ya.

Yesterday we were looking at the Old Dog Haven site. Jack’s picture is in the Final Refuge section. There’s a write-up about him. Jack just got posted a few weeks ago and already there are SIX different people sponsoring him. I showed it to Jack. He couldn’t believe anyone would want to help pay for his care. He still thinks he’s funny looking and doesn’t understand why people like him.

Check out the Old Dog Haven website. You can link to it under “Sites We’ve Marked” on the left side of our home page. Click on Final Refuge. You have to go all the way to the bottom to find Jack. The pictures load slow but it’s worth the wait.

Jack has a heart of gold. He’s honest and solid and predictable. I didn’t really like him when he first joined our pack, but the more I’m around him the more I admire him. He had a tough life before he came to Asherpark but he never complains. He waits his turn for meals and treats. He sits real still for his eye drops even though he doesn’t like them.

All he wants is to know where our mom is. Once he fell asleep and when he woke up he got all panicky ’cause he couldn’t find mom. He was racing all over the house and slipping on the bare floors. I started my emergency bark to let mom know there was a problem. She came running and saw what was going on. Jack couldn’t hear her so she had to be careful not to spook him.

She touched his tail so he would turn around. As soon as he saw her he ran over and put his face against her shoulder. I thought he was going to cry. Mom held him for a while until he calmed down. Tess licked him to make him feel better. I tossed him a ball. Jack’s a good man. I’m glad he’s part of our pack.

I think Jack could be a poster dog for Old Dog Haven. When people get to know him and realize he might have been put down if it weren’t for Old Dog Haven, they’d want to support other old dogs. I’m gonna see if I can’t get some more publicity for Jack. If you got any ideas about how to do that, let me know, okay? Hey thanks a lot. Gotta run.

Last Sunday we had another dog party. Our friends brought King and Julia to play. Julia is a greyhound. She was born to race but our friends rescued her and now she has a great life. King was rescued too. They’re best friends. Here’s a neat picture of Julia that her mom took.

Jack was really happy to see Julia again. The first time she came to see us Jack fell in love with her and wouldn’t leave her alone. Julia could have run away from Jack but she didn’t. I think she knew Jack liked her and she was real nice to him.

On Sunday it was raining but we didn’t care. We were playing chase and having fun. Julia is so fast even I can’t catch her. She was racing around the yard. When she made a turn, she slipped on the sidewalk and skidded hard on her rear legs.

All the people ran to see if she was ok. She wasn’t ok. She was hurt. She rubbed a lot of skin off her legs and could hardly walk. The rest of us dogs knew something bad had happened. Julia limped into the house and curled up on a dog bed.

Julia’s people got her to stay quiet. They put bandages on her where she was bleeding. We all felt sad that she hurt herself when she was having such a good time. It was really tough on Jack.

Julia went to the hospital. She got an x-ray. It showed she had a broken toe. The doctors put her in a splint and bandaged the deep wound. Her people took her home and put her to bed. The next morning she felt better and has already learned how to walk with her splint.

Us house dogs think Julia would like some get well barks. You can send barks to asher@barkingprose.com. There’s also a link under Send A Bark. I’ll make sure she gets them.

Give your own dog some extra hugs today. Life is fragile. One minute you’re having fun and then you’re not. Think about it.