I am different, at least that’s what Mom tells me. She says I am not like any other dog she’s ever had; she’s had a few. She also says that is not necessarily a bad thing. I am the best dog she’s ever had (okay, one of the best). I may not be the easiest, but I am definitely the coolest, definitely the fluffiest, definitely the smartest, and definitely the most stubborn. The smart ones: we’re always tough. I think that’s true for dogs and people. We require a little extra to quiet our overactive brains. I don’t fall in line with what is expected of me. I fit the mold of “dog”, but I am slightly offbeat.
I learn quickly, you might even say instantly. Did I ever tell you, food is the best thing in the world? Well, add a treat into the mix and you are speaking my language- hitting my sweet spot. I WILL WORK FOR FOOD!!! I learned “sit” on the second command. I learned “paw” by the fifth, I learned “down” on the third; even with Scrappy sending mixed signals about what it means.
Scrappy loves food too. He loves it so much he will just run through the whole gamut of commands. If Mom says “down”, Scrappy will “sit”, “paw”, “down”, and immediately “roll over”, just to jump up and give “paw” again. Holy moley Scrap, that is a lot of work for one tiny treat. And to top it off he usually doesn’t even get the treat cause he didn’t do it right.
I pick up habits, both good and bad, in a flash (maybe that’s why they bought me the flash collar and leash…). One middle of the night response to a bark and I will keep it up for a week. One treat for using the bathroom outside and I’ll keep that up too. That’s the good and the bad of being smart and a little different.
I love playing with new friends: new dogs, new kids, new people, and cats too. I am just a puppy still, so social cues aren’t necessarily my thing yet (I said I was smart, not brilliant). Daycare has been wonderful at fulfilling this need for friends. New friends everyday. The problem is that you have to get in a car to get there. YES! That. Is. A. Problem. I don’t love the car. It is tolerable, but only because without it I am stuck here, with all the old friends, who don’t particularly like to play. Scrappy and Lola LOVE car rides, they can’t sit still and will squeal with excitement, level of love for car rides. If friends weren’t waiting at the other end of a car ride, I’d be out, and fast.
We have a reasonably sized wooden box filled with toys: tennis balls, field hockey balls, bones, rubber balls, rope, crunchy, squeaky, stuffed, all sorts of toys. Frankie has probably seven toys. Let me remind you, Frankie is a cat. He has his own room where he has water, a litter box, treats, a heating pad, pillows, couches, a climby thing, and his seven toys that he hasn’t lost yet (YET!!! I won’t tell you if they are under the couches or someone, I mean something else happened). Those toys, they are the toys that I want. The jingle bell rope balls, the feathery, shiny fish, the mouse with the rope tail. Frankie gets the best toys. Ours just don’t compare. So I go into Frankie’s room, put my front feet on his chair, and steal them. Every now and then I will try to steal one right from his mouth. He gets so mad at me he starts to growl. Growling with a toy in his mouth, how does that even happen??? Mom intervenes or Frankie runs with his toy, oooooorrrrrr, I win! I love cat toys. They are just so much better than bland old (or new) dog toys.
I am picky about my water source. I know I am a barge dog, but hey. Mom bought a bright blue, plastic pool for me. She filled the pool with water from the hose. I didn’t like the hose or the pool, or even a bath, which led Mom to believe that I didn’t like water. Well, guess what!?! After a decent walk with Scrappy and Lola through the woods, Mom stopped at the creek and let them go. WHAT!?!?! She never unhooks or drops leashes. I was shocked, and frankly a little annoyed that I hadn’t been unhooked. Scrappy and Lola came back to Mom, she hooked them up, then she let my leash go. Creeks! A creek is fun. Cool, running water with stones, sand, nature, and frogs, and fish all around. After so much excitement and exploration I just sat. I was so overwhelmed by all this wonderful, that I just had to sit my butt right in that cool, running water.
Have I mentioned that I love food? Mom didn’t want me to have people food. Do you remember when I said habits form easily with us smarties? She didn’t want that. What mom does allow: fruits and vegetables. Lola is picky. she love bananas, broccoli, and cauliflower, not much else. Scraps likes a lot, but not everything. I love it all. All except celery. Celery is NOT good. But give me a strawberry, blueberry, apple, banana… okay, I know these are pretty popular and usually crowd favorites; do you need to hear the other things? broccoli, cauliflower, sweet peppers (I LOVE sweet peppers), snap peas, asparagus, raw sweet potatoes, spinach, dragon fruit, and lemons. Much like myself, lemons take some getting used to, but once you get past the first three licks, and barks, and growls, it is actually tasty.
I march to the beat of my own drum. I don’t conform to who or what I am “supposed” to be, like, do, or think. I listen to what my body, brain, and heart tell me are right. I am authentic to my true self. It’s not hard to do. It does require a certain amount of not caring what others think. What they think, is unimportant to me, others that is. I am the only one that gets to live my life for me. That means I need to live my life in accordance with my wants, and needs, and desires, and happiness. When you start to worry what others think, you begin to lose that beat you were dancing to. The drummer is silenced. The beat will slowly turn to background noise, and then all together disappear. The beat comes from within. So, figure out what brings you that beat (the things that bring you joy). For me, it’s fruits and veggies, being smart, but remaining stubborn, making noise, running in streams or creeks, making friends, and cat toys. These are some of the things in life that make my beat, beat loudest. The louder the beat plays, the more authentic you are being to your true self. Find those things and rock the hell out; don’t let the beat fade to silence. Trust me on this one!