Small Town Hound: Time Away and Time Together

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My humans were talking, and it simply did not make sense. At first, it seemed like I would be going along with them on a big trip to my home state of North Carolina, to visit my foster family. My mother Ivy was homeless in Tennessee and the foster family took her and us kids in (they foster through Blackjack Animal Rescue). 

Next thing I know, they are talking about me staying someplace called a kennel (while Mars and Winnie stay home without me). Sometimes as a dog—especially a young dog—the humans get to make the decisions. So, it was the end of April and off to a kennel I went. After an exhaustive search (big intelligent dogs are challenging to board) I ended up at Creekside Acres in Macedon, NY. I had had a trial visit there and that was okay, maybe even a little fun, but after a few days I was really missing Mars, Winnie, and the humans; I wanted to go home. Everyone there was kind to me, but the space was smaller than our outside recreation area and … well … it wasn’t home. Nonetheless, I did alright overall but I was elated…simply elated …when the humans came to pick me up. 

This, my friends, is where my most recent adventure begins. Driven by guilt, my humans decided to take me along to some of my usual favorite places. First, we went to Wayuga Press. I, of course, immediately checked out my most recent column—after checking in with Kyle. I did what I needed to do there, near the creek where the fisher lives, and we loaded the Owl Lights and piled back in the car. 

Our next stop was a place called Hardware Cafe and General Store in Fairhaven, NY. I had been here once before as well. There are no dogs allowed inside (and the day was a bit chilly, so no outside seating) so I hung out in the truck and watched the people go by while the humans went inside. I was cool with that, content in the knowledge that we were back together and that they would offer me a special treat. That, and they had already let me know that we were going somewhere new to have some fun. 

A short drive later we disembarked at Chimney Bluffs State Park. As my one human fiddled with a machine in the car parking area, I caught sight of something exciting! At the far side of the parking lot was a row of rocks just the right size for a game of leap dog. What’s leap dog you ask.
It is when dogs build their coordination (and have a blast) jumping from thing to thing. I quickly jumped up on the first big rock and went the entire row of rocks.

Ahead of me off the final rock was Lake Ontario—water as far as the eyes could see—and trails leading off into the woods. I was super excited but kept my cool as we stopped to take in the view. I knew right away where I wanted to head. I could see a bunch of tall pointy hills that seemed like a most wonderful place to explore. And a wonderful place it was indeed (you should go there sometime if you have never been). 

Then it was back into the truck with one final destination in mind: home. I was so missing my canine friends and we just could not get there fast enough. I expected to see Winnie and Mars, but when we arrived there was another surprise. My one human took me walking on our road and a few minutes later we were joined by Winnie, Mars, and by my human’s big kid, Brittany. We all took a walk together along the road. She smelled familiar but it took me a moment to remember when we first met (another embarrassing moment I’m afraid). I was very little, and she was holding me. I was so thrilled to see her that I had a wee mistake, just a wee one, and I was so young then but still embarrassing to recall. Anyway, I think she forgot about that because once we got reacquainted a bit, she was super fun to hang out with. I did get a little annoyed one time, when she was rubbing her feet on me for too long. I let her know that I do not like human feet all over me (I am surprised the other humans did not let her in on that little secret). I got up and moved to the other side of the room. There were no hard feelings and the next day we said goodbye. Anyway, great fun and the best part of all was being back home.

This, my friends, is when the story gets a little sad. Four days after my humans came back, Mars was not quite right. I would go up to him to say hello and play a little or to initiate a shared grooming time (something we loved) and he did not even seem to notice me at all. The humans knew that something was wrong too. They stayed close to him and gave him lots of loving. The next morning, they moved him closer to the big door so he could look out and listen to the bird songs, but I don’t think he knew we were there. He was an old dog, white around the muzzle as I have mentioned before. Alright, crap, I am a pretty solid dog (in more ways than one) but I am getting all teary-eyed talking about this. It is just sad. Winnie was super sad too. 

Later that day, my other human kid, Kade, came by with a beautiful plant (I heard him tell the humans that it was a corkscrew hazelnut. What I noticed is how closely it matched Mar’s fur (I think the human planned that). They loaded Mars into a little cart and carried him down by the pond. They built a beautiful garden with the hazelnut and some other plants and sat by the pond looking sad. 

That was when I noticed that Mars was gone. I looked all around (of course) but he was not in the house, anywhere in our yard, or in the back of the cart. You have to forgive me as this was my first experience with losing a friend. Mars was a super special collie-cross and he was elegant and handsome. That big guy could have been a show dog, and when my humans told him that he would pick up his step and look fancy. He especially looked great in a hat! 

Life goes on as the humans are fond of saying and now it is just Winnie and I. We do fast pond loops together and are adapting although Winnie does not seem as interested in playing as she once did. She was with Mars since she was very young and misses him so much. Sometimes we go out together walking and sometimes alone. One final adventure I had was a walk to see my kid Kade, when he was working near our home. He works way up on roofs installing solar with a place called GreenSpark Solar (fellow dog people). There were people everywhere and I had a great time saying hello to them. I would have climbed the ladder onto the roof, but they were so high up and I thought it best to leave them be. That, and I was visiting a little with the people who lived there and with their dog Molly, who is good at hunting porcupines (from the sound of it, I do not think this is something I want to try). As you know, I like finding humans and will continue my training in that, while honing my writing skills and keeping everyone up to date on my adventures.

Until next time, Æsc