It would be good to be a dog

My dad used to say that if reincarnation actually existed, he'd want to come back as my grandma's cat. That cat had the life - fresh fish and liver poached to perfection twice a day, a velvet cushion to sleep on, my grandma doting on her.

But sometimes, I think it would be good to be a dog.

In the years since my boys have needed less attention from me, I've transferred that attention to the dogs. My dogs haven't reached the cushy status of my grandma's cat, but they do have a pretty good life.

Someone feeds them twice a day. Just think about that! They never need to plan a menu or think about balanced meals or nutrition. The food just appears for them. I could live with that.

They get out of the house every day for a new adventure. Sometimes, they go to the beach, sometimes to the park, sometimes for a walk (with varied routes), sometimes to training class. Someone else is thinking about their exercise needs and making exercise fun and exciting. I could live with that.



They have plenty of toys. Oh, the toys they have. They can choose any toy from the basket. Chief even steals toys from the neighbor dog. At first I thought my husband was buying the dogs toys - so thoughtful. But then when the neighbor kid noticed that we had all of their toys, I figured it out and spied on the dogs. The neighbor dog brings a toy to the wire fence. Chief smiles, grabs and runs. I'm pretty sure he doesn't even say thank you. I could live with this - my neighbors have better stuff than I do!

I dredged up something from my parenting past the other day. Chief was chewing on his favorite squeaky toy at 6am. This is no ordinary squeaky toy; it's indestructible, which means he can't tear it apart to get the squeaker. So it squeaks and squeaks and squeaks. Before 2 cups of coffee, it is unbearable. Well, I took it away. It now lives on top of the piano and he only gets it after performing some phenomenal trick and only after 10am. And then for a limited time.... (not sure I could live with someone controlling my toys).

The dogs are expected to sleep a lot during the day. Really, after a walk and some food, my dogs need to lie around and relax. I might throw some training sessions into their day or give them a bone to chew. But I do expect a good amount of napping. I could definitely live with this requirement.

Today, I witnessed some moments of pure dog pleasure. I was trying to balance taking the dogs to a training class with their need to go for a walk. I thought that I'd take them for a short walk so that they wouldn't be too tired for training. But if we walked through the park, they could get a good off-leash run and do their business. As we approached the park, I noticed a baseball game convening. But they weren't even ready to warm up and there were some dogs off-leash on the opposite end. I let my dogs go. They ran and played a little. I leashed Charlie, ready to resume our walk through the neighborhood. As I turned to grab Chief (he's only 7 months old...), a swallow caught his eye.

Chief is part German short-haired pointer and part lab or hound. He loves birds. Not to watch or identify or add to his life list. But to chase. The swallows at the park are very nice. They tag team so that he's chasing one, then another, then the first. They never leave the fenced area. Chief gets a great work out.

But there were baseball players ready to start. Chief didn't seem to notice. Or hear me calling him. He may be young, but he has a pretty good recall, especially because he knows that whenever he shows up in front of me with his butt planted on the ground, he will definitely get a treat. But that swallow was just too enticing. So I called him and chased him (stupid human). I threw a handful treats in his face. Nothing deterred him. Finally, after I entertained the baseball team and fans, Chief flopped to the ground, exhausted. But the smile on his face told me that he'd had the time of his life. He was as happy as a kid in a candy store.

I could live with that.