When I was a young'un, my little brother and I rode our ponies all over the world. Since there were no cell phones or GPS, our adults never knew exactly where we were. We'd just leave a note on the kitchen table and head out....sometimes things came up and we changed directions and there was basically no way anyone would know (raspberries ripe!?!@? Let's GO!!) There were times when mom would call around the neighborhood and some lady would see us riding by. Either she would yell out the door, or call the next woman on the party line to give us a holler cause our mom wanted us for some reason (prolly in trouble related to the non-accomplishment of one chore or another)
On many of these adventures, a little golden standard Pomeranian would tag along. His name was Sparky, and if he got tired, he would put his paws on my (or my brother's) foot and bum a ride on the pony, with a hike from us and his collar. Then he would scurry around back and stand on the pony's rump with his legs acting like shock absorbers, no matter how fast or rough the horse ran.
Being a farm dog, back in the day was a rough life, full of huge animals, loud machines, poor food and basically no medical attention, but there was a freedom in it that today's pets will never know. That freedom came at a high price and for Sparky, it came with a calamitous but quick end. He was one of many in a long line of hard living dogs that passed beneath our stroking hands, but he was much missed and long remembered.
This week, Sparky's reincarnation arrived at my home in Indianapolis, complete with sex change. We're calling "him" a variety of Sparky derivatives--Spunky, Sprocket, Sparkles, plus Missy and Foxy. Nothing seems to get a response, but she is very affectionate and submissive (although playful) with the other dogs. Took her to the vet's. She's intact and chipless. In some ways, she's also clueless--such as, taking food off my plate as though it belongs to no one...not coming when called, heading straight for Rural St. when she escapes the house. That being said, she's pretty smart....figured out going to the back yard whenever the pack heads out. Has staked out the pillow area of the big bed, so she doesn't get stepped on or rolled over in the snooz-a-thon melee. She also is submissive with the tomcat although Precious still swats her daily for random irritations.
She has glued herself to my side, even though I'm not convinced she should live here. I'm sure she'd have a home the first day on the HSI show room floor. Although Gretchen and she play very nicely and Spark-ette can run circles around her, I still worry. One snap from Gretchen and this small dog would not need a vet. She's a brain oriented dog, not a heart oriented dog. She'd do great at agility if I knew enough to train her. And she's cute as heck. Hubs is all for keeping her, but I feel like she should belong to my younger brother and his kids. Think I'll give him a call.
On many of these adventures, a little golden standard Pomeranian would tag along. His name was Sparky, and if he got tired, he would put his paws on my (or my brother's) foot and bum a ride on the pony, with a hike from us and his collar. Then he would scurry around back and stand on the pony's rump with his legs acting like shock absorbers, no matter how fast or rough the horse ran.
Being a farm dog, back in the day was a rough life, full of huge animals, loud machines, poor food and basically no medical attention, but there was a freedom in it that today's pets will never know. That freedom came at a high price and for Sparky, it came with a calamitous but quick end. He was one of many in a long line of hard living dogs that passed beneath our stroking hands, but he was much missed and long remembered.
This week, Sparky's reincarnation arrived at my home in Indianapolis, complete with sex change. We're calling "him" a variety of Sparky derivatives--Spunky, Sprocket, Sparkles, plus Missy and Foxy. Nothing seems to get a response, but she is very affectionate and submissive (although playful) with the other dogs. Took her to the vet's. She's intact and chipless. In some ways, she's also clueless--such as, taking food off my plate as though it belongs to no one...not coming when called, heading straight for Rural St. when she escapes the house. That being said, she's pretty smart....figured out going to the back yard whenever the pack heads out. Has staked out the pillow area of the big bed, so she doesn't get stepped on or rolled over in the snooz-a-thon melee. She also is submissive with the tomcat although Precious still swats her daily for random irritations.
She has glued herself to my side, even though I'm not convinced she should live here. I'm sure she'd have a home the first day on the HSI show room floor. Although Gretchen and she play very nicely and Spark-ette can run circles around her, I still worry. One snap from Gretchen and this small dog would not need a vet. She's a brain oriented dog, not a heart oriented dog. She'd do great at agility if I knew enough to train her. And she's cute as heck. Hubs is all for keeping her, but I feel like she should belong to my younger brother and his kids. Think I'll give him a call.
No, no! I'll take her!
ReplyDelete(If I only could.... sigh...)
Dan
She's very affectionate and playful...possibly too much of both, and not 100% on her bathroom habits, but then again, we're not used to a small dog's "needs" and schedule, so maybe we just need to let her out more frequently....sigh.
ReplyDeleteI would like to say that this write-up very pressured me to check out because of the information all about our pets.Great post love to share.
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