Wednesday, October 24, 2007

 

Sad News

I just received a comment on my last posting from Lisa informing me that Pete, the owner of the doggie resort where Oreo sometimes stayed, has died (http://nccpd.org/pdf/InMemoriam-1.pdf). I hardly knew Pete but on my few visits to the resort I was impressed by his love for animals and his quiet devotion to them. He will be missed.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

 

Disobedient Doggie

Cheryl has been telling me about Oreo's repeated disobedience when she takes him to the local dog run at Conroy Pit. Apparently he would frequently not come when called and would end up eating something disgusting or rolling around in same.

Today I got a taste of this behavior when I volunteered to take the miscreant mutt to the Pit so Cheryl could go to a Saturday event. When we got to the parking lot, things were fine. I had Oreo on his leash and we headed down the path to the woods. About a hundred yards in I let him off his leash. That's when he usually heads off down the path. But today he decided to turn around and head back to the parking lot.

It seems he likes the parking lot since it's a feast of different dog smells. Plus today there were a number of dogs just starting out from the lot so he wanted to play with them. Despite my repeated calls, the careless canine would not return. I had to walk back to the parking lot and put him on the leash.

Once we got about 200 yards from the lot, I could unleash him and he was fine. Throughout the walk, I periodically called him and gave him a small treat. That seemed to work. But just to be safe, when we got within sight of the parking lot, I put the leash on again. At that point, I ran into another owner who knew Oreo. I mentioned his misbehavior and he just said: "It's his age."

I didn't clue in at first but once I thought about it, it made sense. After all, Oreo is two and a half years old, which in human years makes him a teenager. The bad behavior is nothing more than adolescent rebellion by a rambunctious teen.

Now knowing what's behind Oreo's recent actions, I'll be less surprised by his behavior. However, I think we're going to have to draw the line at smoking, drinking and midnight dog parties.

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