BarkingProse

We have some guest dogs staying with us this weekend. They’re my good friends Pepper, Maggi and Libby. We’ve played together a lot.

That’s Libby who has me by the throat. Sometimes the play gets a little rough, but I don’t mind. Before Jack arrived I was the only boy dog. It was like I had my own harem when they stayed with us.

When we’re out running around, mom has to count on her fingers to make sure none of us has gone solo.

Mom thinks its fun to get a whole bunch of dogs together and have a party. I’ve noticed the people usually have a good time too. One time I went to the ocean with the Labradors. We met up with some other dogs and had a beach party. It was a blast.

Today we’re all just hanging out. We got mom up at 5am so we could start having fun. We’ve had breakfast and played hard. Now everybody’s taking a nap. Life is good. Gotta run.

You know how Jack always tries to be mister perfect. He’s afraid of doing something wrong. He’s scared he might get sent away.

One morning mom forgot to tell me to drop whatever I had in my mouth before we went outside. It was still pretty dark and she wasn’t awake yet. In my rush to be the first one out the door, I took dad’s slipper with me.

Once outside I didn’t want the slipper any more, so I dropped it in the garden. When dad got up he started looking for his slipper. Mom looked in all the usual hiding places, but she couldn’t find it. She asked me where I put it – as if I were the only possible suspect. Dad was getting impatient. Finally mom looked outside. Voila! Le slipper!!

The slipper was fine. Oh, it was a little cold and damp from the dew. But it’s not like somebody went pee on it. A few minutes in the dryer and it would be as good as new. But the humans were grumpy and when mom handed dad his soggy slipper, he said he was going to lock me in the garage if I kept stealing his slipper. I knew he was kidding so I was about to give him a sloppy kiss when Jack spoke up.

“I took the slipper.” Jack said. “Ash had nothing to do with it.” The room became very quiet. Mom and dad knew Jack was lying to protect me. Dad put the slipper down. Tess and I stood real still.

Jack hung his head. Tess and I were both crying. We understood Jack was willing to risk everything to save me from being locked in the garage. Jack was sure mom wouldn’t want him if she thought he took the slipper and he was prepared to be sent away.

Mom knelt down in front of Jack. She took his big scarred head in her hands and told him everything was okay. She said I wasn’t in trouble and nobody ever got locked in the garage, no matter what they did.

Mom kissed Jack on his snout. Jack gave her a soft lick. Dad ruffled Jack’s fur and kissed him on the top of his head. Jack extended his paw. Tess licked my eyes to get rid of the tears. Mom quietly asked me and Tess to sit. She got treats and gave the first one to Jack. He took it gently from her hand. Tess and I did the same. It was a moment I will never forget. It’s how love grows.

You already know about my little brother Zag. He was born a year after me. In my litter there were a bunch of other pups. I was the only blue dog, and like I’ve said before, I was born with the fading gene which makes me imperfect in the eyes of the AKC.

Who cares about the AKC? Mom says there’s no better dog in this world than me. Anyway, two of my brothers were adopted by mom’s good friend. That’s why I get to see them once in a while.

Here’s a picture of me with my two brothers Abel and Arrow. It was taken when we were almost a year old. Since Abel and Arrow were raised together and always had each other to play with, they’re not real interested in playing with me. They can’t jump and fly like I do, so they pretty much ignore me. But you can’t choose your family and I’m okay with having Arrow and Abel as my sibs.

Abel and Arrow are coming to visit me on the 4th of July. They’re scared of fireworks and want to hang out in the country to get away from the noise. Tess is scared of fireworks too, so they can all be scared together.

I’m hoping mom will get  some fun pictures of my brothers. They want me to post a bark or two about them and I need some new pics. Jack’s not gonna be happy when he sees them. He prefers girl dogs. But he’ll get over it. I think it’s good for Jack to meet my family. Wish I knew where his family is. Tess too.

See that’s the sad part of being a rescue dog. Nobody knows anything about your family. So I told Jack he could be an honorary Australian Shepherd and we’d be cousins. He’s not too sure he likes the idea, but at least he knows I’m thinking about him. Anyway, gotta run.