Story | A Wag of a Tail...

My sleeping little angle

The bed shakes to the rhythm of a happily wagging tail; I feel eyes watching me along with hot panting breath in my face. My eyes open slowly, taking their time to focus in the early morning light that streams softly through the window. The only thing I can see is the face of my sweet dog Lucky, gazing at me with a look of excitement as his tongue reaches out to lick my face. After he gives me what he considers morning kisses, he looks at me intently, tail still wagging with what looks like a smile on his face. I stretch and look at the clock to see that it is a very early seven am. I look back at my furry friend who is still staring at me and waiting patiently with his head cocked to the side as if he is wondering why it is taking me so long to get out of bed. I reach up and scratch him behind the ear and he leans into my hand and his tail begins to wag faster thumping the mattress loudly.

With a yawn and a groan, I stumble to the kitchen and hear the sound of Lucky’s nails clicking the floor behind me as he follows at my heals. I flick the kitchen light on and it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust as I almost trip over the fur ball beneath my feet. He sits patiently waiting next to me while I start my morning java and the coffee maker comes to life as I look down at my little friend, with his tail still wagging. As the most wonderful smell of my fresh brew creeps into my nostrils, I stagger to the back door and as I pull it open, a flash of brown blows past me and out the door. My little speed demon takes chase after a squirrel that I know he will never catch. With a smile on my face I head to the window to watch him fly through the yard and laugh when the squirrel makes a quick getaway and races up the telephone pole at the corner of the yard. The beeping of the coffee maker brings me back from my morning daze at the window and I pull my favorite mug from the cupboard. I take a nice big sip from my now steaming mug and take a moment to enjoy the wonderful taste, one of my simple joys in life. I know Lucky is waiting for me outside at the door and as I open it, he rushes in and is ready for his breakfast. He sits pretty and waits ever so patiently as I fix his meal and set the bowl in front of him. After my hungry boy gobbles down the kibble as fast as he can, he happily follows me in to the living room to catch a bit of the morning news.

Now that I am awake and my morning coffee has done its job, I walk to the bedroom with a spring in my step. As I fumble through the drawers to find something to wear, I can see out of the corner of my eye, the wagging tail of the little dog that followed me and is now watching me intently in the doorway. Once dressed, I go in search of the collar and leach that belongs to my crazy little friend. He follows me excitedly knowing full well that it is his walk time. He helps me locate the leash and collar, his tail wagging so furiously that his whole body wags along with it. Trying to control himself and not having much luck, he sits and waits for be to put his collar on as a bark escapes his mouth. Now that we are ready, He pulls me to the door and our adventure begins.

As our walk begins, Lucky has his nose to the ground, taking as many smells as he can. He walks fast as though he is on a mission and in a big hurry, looking up every few seconds to look for squirrels. He spots one and freezes as a whine escapes him; he cannot control his excitement and with all his mite darts off to chase it, but the leash catches him and stops him in his tracks. By the middle of the walk, he has now slowed down and is prancing with his nose in the air as if he is the envy of all other dogs. He pulls up alongside a fire hydrant and leaves his mark for all other dogs that walk by after him and we begin our last stretch and head in the direction of home. By this time, he seems a little tired out and is panting as his tongue hangs from his mouth.

Once home, my shadow of a dog drinks a bowl of water before following me downstairs to the laundry room where I throw a load of wash in the washing machine. I take the stairs two at a time back up stairs and start my cleaning as Lucky keeps up right behind me. The wagging tail thumps the floor while I clean the bathrooms, he lies sleepily on the hardwood floor in the kitchen while I clean and put dishes away. Cleaning the bedroom, I realize that making the bed could be a difficult job thanks to the 40 pound mutt deciding it would be great fun to lie in the middle of it as I try to make it around him. I get the vacuum out, and he protectively growls at is as I plug it in and it roars to life. As I push this loud, heavy, sucking machine from room to room, my fierce attack dog continuously barks and lunges trying to bite it, then finally relaxes when the scary machine is turned off and returned back to the closet.

With a growling belly, I head to the kitchen and begin to make dinner as I catch a glimpse of my little brown dog watching me with hopeful eyes. As I cook, he lies by my feet watching and waiting for me to drop a morsel of food for him. I giggle at him as I drop a piece of cheese and pretend not to notice. He inhales it and I am positive he hasn’t even tasted it! I finally sit down to my meal and my adorable little dog sits next to me pretending he is starving and acts like he hasn’t eaten in a week. I show him some tough love this time and refuse to give into him because he will get his dinner as soon as I finish mine.

Now that the house is clean, the laundry is done, the dinner mess is cleaned up, and we both have food in our bellies, it is time for some rest and relaxation. My furry friend and I make ourselves comfortable and cozy in the living room and find something on TV that we both can agree on. I pet my attention seeking pup for a few minutes and he falls asleep fast. He is a tired little guy who has had a long day following me around and helping me clean, cook, and get the laundry done. He has chased squirrels and protected me from the big mean vacuum and in his mind; his days’ work is done. This little lovable, faithful, protective, loyal, understanding, happy little dog is my shadow; He follows me everywhere he can and…… I wouldn’t want it any other way!

My two boys waiting to play a good game of “Go Find It”

My dogs, Zeus and Lucky have so much fun playing a game that I invented: “Go find it”. As soon as I ask them if they want to play their favorite game, their noses go into over drive. The only rule is that they have to sit and stay in the dining room while I hide a large handful of their tasty kibble. This is really difficult for them because their anticipation and excitement rises, which makes them whine and unable to sit still. Once the tasty morsels are all hidden, I release them from the dining room by saying “go find it” in a super excited voice and the dogs are released! Off they go on a wild hunt for the mouthwatering snacks, running to and fro in a race to see who can find the most kibble. First, their noses are high in the air searching out the scent that they long for. Next, they search every inch of the living room. They check every corner, under tables, on the couch, tossing cushions from here to there, and even beneath the couch. They desperately search every inch of the living room! After a few minutes, my furry friends are jumping on and over the furniture, racing in one direction, then the next. My boys have been known to even run into each other or knock down innocent bystanders. They are like wild dogs running crazily through my home. The house is full of chaos! Finally, the count down begins as I tell them how many are left and the race picks up speed. Lastly, when my treat searching fools have found all of their hidden snacks, they run to where I am standing and sniff my hands and pockets just to make sure that I wasn’t holding any back. This game is fun for all involved. Just thinking about it, the laughter starts to bubble up in my throat. I find it humorous to watch my boys go crazy for their little bites of heaven.