The Bark of My Child
Today, because he is stinky and hairy and hasn't had a bath in a year (well, he does a lot of self-grooming), Bucky was taken to PetDaddy, the local dogbath emporium where he was booked for the premium shampoo, blowdry, anal gland expression (Don't ask. I don't.) AND Deluxe Furminator treatment.
After leaving 110 lbs of wildeyed black dog to the ministrations of the kindly girls at PetDaddy, we took ourselves over to Cafe Lulu where we drank lattes and ate bagels with eggs. Fun for us ... but our minds and hearts were at PetDaddy. I kept asking Jim, "Think we should go over there and check on him?" Jim kept saying, "No."
Eventually though, I convinced Jim that it was close enough to time that we could go back and see how it was going. I stuck my head in the door, said to the person at the counter, "We just came to see how ..." and I hear this anguished bark from the back, a bark that I recognize as that of my gigantic boy.
He heard me! He wants me to rescue him! I'm here, babydog, I'm here!!!
The girl at the counter said, a bit sternly, "He was doing fine. And we're not quite done."
Jim interjects, as he's dragging me back toward the door, "We understand ... we'll be back in a half hour."
But, but ...
Well, eventually they let me have him. With about ten pounds less hair than when he arrived. But I can't tell you how thrilled I was to have heard that bark. The bark of my furchild. Who recognized my voice. MY voice.
I guess you'd have to know how devil-may-care that dog is most of the time about my affection. But now I know the truth. He loves me.
Hah!
posted by mireille at 7:44 PM
10 Comments:
Awwww! What a cute story! My family used to bath our own dog (a little Shetland sheepdog) ourselves once a year. Result: she hated us for days (though I have photos that prove she liked the blowdry part). Far better to have the dog have someone else to blame, and for you to be the valiant rescuer!
3:06 AM
Aw, well, you're quite lucky that Bucky decided to hold no grudge. Poor Bucky, though! His hairy little world suddenly turned 180 degrees, from a friendly stinky place, to a tortuous soapy place. Fred would give him a shoulder to cry upon, but Fred gets baths once a week in the summer, and once a month in the winter, so I suspect he'd be less than completely sympathetic.
What is a Deluxe Furminator? Is that a hair cut?
2:09 PM
Well, of course he loves you! You're his Mama.
We love you too.
2:13 PM
awwww, Lucy. Lulu, you're so right: much better to be distanced from the whole bath thing. Katie, Fred is so clean! This furminator thingy is a kind of a comb that reaches down into the undercoat (which on Bucky is dense, dense, dense) and kind of shears it off and then lifts it up and away. They told me they furminated a mountain of hair off him ... of course I defensively told them I DO brush him but I doubt they believed me. xoxo
3:11 PM
I'm absolutely sure he knew you were coming to rescue him.
Whenever I spoke sternly to my pussycat or threatened her with the water pistol she used to come and take refuge with me - from me, LOL! I like to think she also knew my voice...
7:56 AM
That story sounds vaguely familiar. My dogs play in sage all day so they don't get bathed often.
By the way, Walela is a pistol to watch. I usually can't move for three days after and I keep a tourniquet by the tub.
12:52 PM
awww, A -- did you have to leave your cat in Japan? Sounds like it ... I'm sure you miss him/her. xoxo
5:07 PM
Woof!
5:15 PM
He´s always loved you...but he is the strong one to protect you so he can´t show weakness in day-to-day occurances. Now that he felt threatened he was dog enough to bark for you!
5:12 AM
Tom&Icy AND Minka!! Wow! So good to see you all! xoxo
8:59 AM
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