Things You Notice When Life Slows Down a Bit

tx_cowgirl

Honored Member
Staff member
It's been nice weather this week, so I've been out with my animals as much as possible.
The other day I came home and was greeted by an excited Zeke and a very mellow but cheerful Rusty. He plodded up to me, butt wagging, and since I had nothing else to do, I stroked his ear and before I knew it I was sitting on the back porch giving him a full-body massage. :doglaugh: I started on his neck and he just flopped right over, completely relaxed. It was funny. He always does that. xD Sometimes Rusty's calm behavior is a sweet reprieve from Mud and Zeke's workaholic activities. Lol. Rusty's a 60+ pound snuggler, and never turns down the opporunity to cuddle up as close as he can get and snooze. Lol.
Yesterday I took Zeke to a nearby field and played fetch for a good while. I took notice of his beauty and athleticism as he'd take off after the ball, running through the Texas dirt and wheat that grows in that field. I need to get some recent pics of him. =) He's so fast. o-o He enjoys catching it too, so just for kicks I decided to see how high he could jump(straight in the air). When we quit we sat down and just took in the fresh air and the sunset. I love living in the country...no high-rise apartments or skyscrapers to ruin the horizon. It was relaxing.
Today, a few hours ago, Mud's curiousity made me smile... Whatever was on TV was showing some whooping cranes, and at the unusual noise they made, she spun around. She stared at the TV, head cocked to one side, left ear falling over a bit at the tip, wondering what on Earth made that noise and what those weird flying things were doing. For a long while she just stood there with that amusing look on her face, completely bewildered.
This week's been kind of crummy, and one particular day I came home in a not-so-good mood to find Mud cheery as always, Rusty wanting to snuggle, and Z a little calmer than normal, wanting some attention. A few days ago I woke up to Nick snuggled up next to me as close as he could get, rolled over on his back with all four legs in the air. :doglaugh:
The things our dogs do that make us happy...:doghappy:
 

tx_cowgirl

Honored Member
Staff member
Also, Mud did great today...I took her to a field by my house, and had her off-leash the whole time. Not all that big of a deal, but she hasn't been leash-trained long, and we're still working on the off-leash heel. While passing my sheep, steers, horses, two neighbors on horseback a few feet away, a person riding a four-wheeler, and several cats, she stayed with her shoulder at my knee all the way to the field and all the way back. I like my dogs to stay in this position off-leash, and then I teach the actual "heel" separately. They aren't "forced" to stay in this position, I simply want them to hold it until I "release" them. Anyway, she stayed perfectly despite all of these very big distractions. (It's not easy for a Border Collie to stay in position off-leash while passing livestock.) I've been advancing her "Stay," also. She would probably stay if I walked 100 ft away, lol, but I haven't asked her to. Today I asked for a Sit, Stay, and jogged roughly 60 feet away, stopped, turned, waited a minute or two, then called her to me. We did this several times and she never broke her stay. ^^
 

Cavalier

New Member
Sounds like some good days in the country. Many times I come home and just crab Tucker and snuggle for a minute, just so I can let work go. However he is quite impatient with as he is only 8 months now and just want to play. But it just helps me to be able to relax that night if I can set my basd day aside and Tucker is usually the fastest way to do it.
Good job with the loose leash heal, I don't think I ever will teach Tucker that just because of traffic.
However today was his longest motorcycle ride hid did great, and loved every minute of it. It was only 4 miles at 45-50mph you should see him sitting on my gas tank doggles on wind running through his hair ears flapping, he probable thinks he is the coolest thing on earth.
 

tx_cowgirl

Honored Member
Staff member
Lol, that's great! xD That would definitely be an interesting sight. A pup cruising down the road with his buddy on a motorcycle. Lol. When I take Mud to the more urban areas I always keep her on-leash, just as a precaution. Any other time, though, she's either off-leash, dragging her leash, or on-leash just long enough to get to the fields.
Dogs definitely can make us feel better at the end of a long day...even if they aren't snugglers, lol. Sometimes the exuberance and desire to play is their way of pushing us on rather than sitting and dwelling on the bad day. ^^ And that's refreshing, too.
 

morgancherilyn

Well-Known Member
Have you all seen the email that's been going around - a dog's diary vs a cat's diary? if you have....that's my dog through and through. Nothing brings me more joy than to watch her delight in each moment! If you haven't seen the email, I've saved it, and can maybe post it somehow, it's laugh out loud funny
 
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