Dog Days

There is no doubt about it. Don and I have been neglecting the dogs. We've definitely been laxed with the whole dog walking thing over the last couple of winter months. And by laxed, I mean nigh on nonexistent. No excuses either. I don't care if it gets dark earlier and it's a few degrees cooler. It's not like there is rain to contend with and we live in a super safe neighborhood. So it basically comes down to our sheer wussiness and lazy behavior.

So we are making it up to the pups by trying to cram in a months worth of excitement in one, beautiful weekend. With the Santa Anna winds blowing through and temps this weekend in the 70s and 80s, Don and I are as itching to blow off this cabin fever as the dogs. You already know from my previous blog that we have a lovely picnic planned for tomorrow which of course we'll be bringing the dogs to.

Today we decided to make the most of the day by getting in some exercise and errands at the same time. Seumas could barely contain himself in the minutes before we left when he "sensed" that we were getting ready to go for a walk and was bound and determined not to be left behind. We started off with a walk to Subway for a nice healthy lunch and a cup of water for the dogs. Then we cut through the park and over to the bank to deposit some checks for our house savings. After that we cut back through the park and saw a few people out with their small dogs and decided to join them for a little puppy play time.

It turned out to be purebread pairs day at the park. We of course were representing the Wiener Dogs. There was another couple there with two little Jack Russels, a lady with two Pomeranians, and eventually another guy showed up with his four Scottish Terriers. All the dogs got along great and Seumas ran himself ragged playing fetch and impressing everyone with how fast he could run and how high he could jump.

All of the dog owners were nice and fun people, and I have to comment that it was nice for once to be around other purebread owners. Sometimes I feel like going to the dog park is a bit like going to the pound. Everyone has their rescue dog and this great story about how they gave a condemned dog a second chance at life. Don't get me wrong. I think that is a wonderful thing and I applaud everyone who does it. I may even be one of those people some day. But I also understand what it is like to love a breed and to want that experience of bringing a pup home from the litter and raising it "from scratch" so to speak. It was nice for once to enjoy being around other dog owners without feeling like a criminal for owning a purebread. At the end of the day, we got the dogs that we did because we loved them and they were the right fit for our family just like everyone else, not because of any pricetag or certificate that they came with, and I wouldn't trade them for any other dogs in the world.

On the walk back home, we passed a guy who had a nickname for our dogs that I'd never heard before. Of course the common ones are wiener dogs, sausage dogs, and hot dogs. But as he passed by and pointed at Cordy and Seumas he commented in his thick accent, English clearly not being his first language, "Twinkies!" This of course has already become my new favorite nickname for the dogs. As we walked away, as soon as the guy was out of earshot, Don commented that with her winter weight Cordy looks more like a Ding Dong right now than a Twinkie. Alas it is true. But hopefully with this change in weather, in no time we should have them back in Twinkie Shape again.

Our total trip today was about 4 miles all together and that's not including all of the running around at the park. Right now both Cordy and Seumas are having the best nap of their lives.