DO DOGS REMEMBER THE PAST ?

Do dogs remember the past ?

Of course, they do! If they didn't, they wouldn't do a happy wiggle-worm dance, sing a woofing welcome song, weave in your legs and let you in, when you come back from work or an overnight trip.

Quite the contrary! They would take you for an intruder, bark threateningly, growl and fend you off.

Come on, I'm kididng. I'm just saying that to butter up all our so-called guard dogs, who wait eagerly for the pizza delivery guy, and just welcome him with open paws, drooling chops and no frills.

No, actually, our four-legged friends are much wiser than us. They don't waste their energy dwelling on the past, they just want to suck out all the marrow of life and ...of bones, as well, and live fully in the present.

Carpe Diem is their watchword.

Yet, all the good and bad things about the past are buried somewhere in their memory and can pop up years after. 

That's what we learned when we adopted Indy, an English Springer Spaniel , my son had brought back from a shelter in the South-West of France.

The only glimpse of her story we had was that after searching for pheasants, partridges, and waterfowls, her nose had gone on strike, and she had been fired!

Awfully shocking, but unfortunately true. Some people don't deserve a dog, but that's another story...

When the poor sweetheart arrived in our place, she was just skin and bone, but so scared of moving an inch to her bowl that we had to handfeed her for nearly two weeks, otherwise I guess she would have starved herself.

Then, little by little, she felt safer enough to turn into a hearty eater, and even sometimes into a cheeky stealer!

One month later, Indy had got used to her new life of ease, comfy basket, yummy meals, treats and cuddles, but there was still something puzzling in her behavior...

Whenever we came back home, she never failed to wag her tail, wriggle and grin, but never uttered a single welcoming woof.

Dearhubby, that mocking guy, said that it was a blessing, cause one chatterbox at home was enough! I still can't see who he was talking about!

Time went by, and Indy stayed woofless (for non-dog speaking readers, that means ' speechless').

When we introduced her to Ulysse, my mother-in-law's  new puppy, it was love at first sight. I mean, Ulysse immediately had a crush on our sweet Indy, and did all his pawssible silly antics to make friends with her.

His leaps, rolls, pawings, and yaps were so enthusiastic that Indy quickly joined his " catch-me-if-you-can " game.

But, Ulysse was a buoyant pupy, and Indy soon realized that she couldn't face the challenge.

What could she do, then, to teach that restless kid to respect ladies like her ?

You know what?

She spared no effort, rushed to him and ...barked in his ears.

Ulysse stopped dead, but our so-called dumb Indy, too.

Then, scared by the sound of her own voice, she sought refuge in the garden shed where we found her , shaking and looking at us with imploring eyes saying , " I promise, I won't do it again. I will be as silent as a grave ".

We comforted her, and told her that we were not angry at her, she could bark at that naughty puppy to show him who ruled the roost, but it took us quite a while to persuade her to get out of the shed.

That's when something just clicked with me.

In her early years, perhaps Indy had performed that kind of woofing exercises too often, and at any time of the day, and then been punished in a way I still refuse to imagine...After that kind of rough patches, she had decided that " Speech is silver, silence is gold "was a safer lifestyle.

Anyway, that 's the only time we heard her voice.

So now, what do you think ? Is that just my dogaholism that plays tricks on me, or do dogs remember the past ? Please, let me know.

In the meantime, happy tails to you!

CAN CATS AND DOGS GET ALONG ?

Is it true that cats and dogs are harwired to hate each other, or is it just popular belief ?

Well, it seems my two dogs are quite conventional, and have decided to stick to stereotypes, each in his own way.

Canaille, the English Springer Spaniel, is anything but a risk-taker, and the smallest insect flying too close to him throws him onto Sugardaddy's lap for protection. So, whenever I take him out for a walk, if we bump into straycats, he stops dead, as if rooted to the ground, and looks at me with ' Nope, not going there! ' eyes.

The long-whiskered mewing creatures must have gossiped about the local scaredy-cat Springer, cause every morning the neighbour's tabby cat comes to play silly antics behind our kitchen glass door.

No need to say that those morning performances drive Canaille nuts, and telling him that Leon is a dog-friendly cat doesn't calm him down.

Why ? Maybe because the only difference between Leon and Lion is just a single vowel ...Who knows ?

With Ulysse, the Coton de Tuléar, that's another story. 

That cute little dog is anything but a coward, and whatever the size of his four-legged fellows, he never fails to rule the roost.

Since he was born, he has led a blood feud against cats!

He is an aboslutely fabulous runner, and he must have beaten the Sprint World Record dozens of times.

Fortunately he is a poor tree-climber. So, no teeth and claws duels, just barks and hisses concerts.

But that buoyant and clownish little guy has more than one trick up his sleeve, and when fighting like cats and dogs is out of question, he knows how to challenge them...

Last time I visited an old neighbour of mine, who shares her cottage with Juju, a beautiful but a bit grumpy tomcat, first Ulysse behaved very smartly, and didn't lunge at Juju, who was lying on the sofa.

Of course, he gave it an old college try to command respect, but in spite of his warning growls, Juju didn't move an inch. Instead, she yawned, stretched just enough to show her claws, and then curled up again on her cushion.

After all, an Englishman's home is his castle, isn't it ?

Ulysse , who had expected a kind of eyeball-to-eyeball encounter, didn't know where to stand. He had to react quickly, cause otherwise he would be tarred with the same brush as Wimpy Canaille! What a shame! He was like a cat on a hot tin roof.

Then ,suddenly, before I could realize , he had rushed to the cat's bowl, swallowed down her dry food, and drunk down her water in one go.

Then he licked his chops and looked at Juju as if saying , " You see, there's more than one way to skin a cat! ".

Boy, my "Mr Three-Teeth-Left "    who couldn't munch kibbles,and kept turning up his nose at his bowl, had sacrificed his so-called delicate stomach for his cat-chasing reputation!

Cheeky Ulysse's good education to start from scratch again (sorry, no pun intended).

Of course, I apologized, and the day after I offered a nice scratch post to Juju on behalf of Ulysse.

Now I hope their next dog-cat introduction will get along swimmingly...

In the meantime, all your tips and tricks to turn Ulysse into a cat-friendly dog are welcomed.

DO DOGS MIMIC THEIR OWNERS ?

Today a feel-good story!

I have read on the Net that dogs mimic their owners.

Well, our two dogs are just like chalk and cheese : Ulysse is a kind of easy-going boy, and usually toes the rule, whereas Canaille's silly antics often drive him across the red line. Then, better not try to find out who mimics Dearhubby, and who mimics me...

Anyway, those two guys are eager and hard-working students, and there is no way to quench their thirst for knowledge.

As soon as we step into the kitchen, they immediately paw in, too, ready to learn how to open the fridge or the treats drawer.

When running a bath, quite sure to come across two pairs of eyes saying , " We know how to jump into that huge puddle, but could you show us how not to flood the whole bathroom ? ".

Lacing up our shoes usually triggers a woofing rumpus, cause of their tremendous efforts to do the same loops with their leashes.

When it comes to imitating us in the garden, they don't live yet up to their expectations ( and not to ours, either), and still confuse planting and digging (even though they give it the old college try...).

But, whatever their daily imitation performances, I think Ulysse and Canaille will never make me laugh as much as Indy, a she-Springer, who shared our lives for too few years.

My son had adopted her from a shelter in the South-West of France, but at the time he was working in a restaurant, and always on a tight schedule, so we decided to dogsit Indy ...furever!

When we homed her, the poor girl was just skin and bones, and her frightened eyes let us figure out the rough patches she had gone through, before my son rescued her.

She was so shy that when we were sitting on the sofa, watching TV, she used to curl up in a very small corner of the room, as if she thought she was an intruder. 

Quite sure that that sweetheart had had her fair share of rebukes.

So, one day, to make her feel at ease, Dearhubby decided to sit on the floor near her.That was a way to show her that all humans were not tough and heartless, and that now she could enjoy a carefree life.

As soon as he sat down close to her, she looked up at him shyly and quite puzzled, then slowly stood up, tippawed to the sofa where I was sitting, and after a last flabbergasted gaze at Dearhubby, she climbed onto the sofa, looked at me, uttered a deep sigh and went to sleep!

That was a living proof that dogs mimic their owners, wasn't it ?

Good bye, dear reader, and remember : behave yourself, just in case a dog should be watching you!

And don't forget : BE PERKY!

TWO DOGS UNDER THE SAME ROOF : TWO DIFFERENT WAYS OF LIFE

Hi everybody,

If you browse through my blog, you'll be soon surrounded by wet noses, wagging tails,and cheerful woofs, so no use hiding it : I am a genuine dogaholic.

Overcoming my addiction and going to rehab ? 

Well, there are plenty of Dogaholics Anonymous meetings around here, and I've already attended quite a few, at the vet, at the groomer, at the local shelter, and you know what ?

I've come back home with more pawesome stories to share with Dearhubby, who suffers from dogaholism, too!

You see, actually I think that I don't feel like being cured, cause of the tremendous amount of love and fun my dogs bring into my life.

Come on, don't get me wrong! Having a dog is not just treats and cuddles. If you want to laugh at your pooches' silly antics furever, first thing is to keep them healthy.

My two dogs, Canaille, the English Springer Spaniel, and Uysse, the Coton de Tuléar, are just like chalk and cheese, so everyday cares turn either into some kind of chilling out, or some kind of workout. Different dogs, different strokes, and when you know those two breeds, not hard to guess who takes it easy, and who fools around...

Feeding Ulysse reminds me twice a day that I am a poor cook, cause, more often than not, he turns up his nose at my lovingly-prepared meals.

Yes,lovingly-prepared, and that's putting it mildly.

Actually, Ulysse is not a picky eater, but if I tell you that we nickname him " Sir Three Teeth Left ", you'll figure out easily my " kitchen nightmares ".

Easy-peasy with Canaille who is an eager eater, and swallows down whatever is in his bowl or drops from the chopping-board. That's how a while ago, he gulped down a clove of garlic, and then stared at me, as if saying " Hey naughty you, how can I find a girlfriend with such a smelly breath ? ".

When it comes to daily grooming, Ulysse is the perfect customer and the perfect tipper. A few licks on my hand to show he is satisfied with his fluffy cottony coat hairstyle. Fortunately my comb has more teeth than him, cause his hair gets matted in a wink, and frolicking in the dead leaves turns him into a worn-out mop!

Quite another story with Canaille, who is not a risk-taker, and has two great enemies at home : the roaring vacuum-cleaning monster, and the brushing " hedgehog ".

As soon as I take the brush out, he runs around the room like crazy, jumping and barking at it. The only trick I have found to help him make up with the brush, is to put the treats jar close to me. Then, I can deal with my panting and drooling customer.

Walking time is my favourite part of their daily cares. In Brittany there are plenty of country lanes where they can go off leash and sniff the latest news from " the Wild West ", and where I can meet ...other dogaholics!

Anyway, even if I master all that quite well, it doesn't make me the packleader...

Canaille is an English Springer Spaniel, which means a first-rate cuddle maker, a speedy ballboy, a heart-melting beggar, but a " let me have it my own crazy way " guy from time to time...

Ulysse, the Coton de Tuléar " was my mother-in-law's, and he came to our place when she died. I guess she brought up her boy pretty well, cause he toes the line. Did she bring up Dearhubby in the same way ?

Hnmm! ...Come on, I'm kidding, two dogaholics never criticize each other!

Now that I've told you everything about my dogs' daily routine, a special note for my regular readers and the new comers.

Any resemblance to reality is not pure coincidence, but just the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, from the early posts to the latest ones.

                                               Pawesomely yours.