You know how sometimes you see a 4 wheel drive vehicle that has been playing off road? You can identify them by the coat of mud they are proudly wearing. Dogs are not much different in that regard.
We started yesterday with lightening, thunder and about 1 1/2 inches of rain. Late in the day Hank and Mick were playing "watch the squirrel" under the tree. Squirrels like nothing better than to torment the dogs by leaping from tree to tree, over the roof of the house to the back yard for more tree tag. We all know that grass does not grow much under the trees. So the dogs were mudding it to stalk the squirrel. On the plus side they love to hunt, and it kept them occupied for a long time. When they came in Hanks belly and legs were coated with much like a SUV fresh from off roading. He was caked with mud. Micky just had muddy paws which he cleaned himself. How accommodating.
I decided only a bath would do for Mr. Hanky. So up to the bathroom we went. I did not occur to me that he many have never had an indoor bath before. He usual gets hosed down in the back yard and tolerates it very well. That was my first mistake. I scooped him up and lifted his muddy self into the tub and with my hand tightly on his collar he stood there....well, he stood there. Stooping beside the tub, one hand holding Hank in place, I adjusted the water temp and switched it to the shower nozzle. At the first experience of water hitting his belly area Hank exploded. It was one leap 4' up and out of the tub, with my hand firmly on his collar. My other hand grasping the shower nozzle as I was knocked on my keester. I'd have to say forgetting Hank's legs have springs in them would have been my second mistake.
Hank gets the award for bath tub shenanigans. In all my years of tubbing dogs none have ever pulled that stunt. Past experience definitely led me to a certain complacency about the thrills that can occur while bathing a dog.
Rather than freak him out again in the tub, without an able bodied assistant to hold him in place, I opted for the outside hose down. He liked that much better. If only we had a camera rolling when he bolted from the tub, talk about a Kodak moment!
Life with dogs. A little humor, a dash of play, a seed of faith, and of course, some dog fur.
1 comment:
How well I can understand the mud!! My JRT loves to run the fence chasing any dog on the other side - and also the squirrels - he almost flys across the yard at the squirrels ... they beat him to the tree and sit there chattering at him ... he takes that moment to lift a leg and show the squirrel what he has to cross when he comes back down ... needless to say, him being so short that when he does come in he is mud clear to the belly although a lot easier to give a bath to than Mr. Hanky - I toss him in the sink and he is clean again in no time at all ... given the chance, however, he is right back outside as soon as he can get out of my sight and the game starts all over ... just gotta love them - mud and all!!
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