Guard dog Josie

After waking up this morning, we let Josie out of our bedroom and she ran downstairs, as usual. Then came this tremendous barking – the barking that says, “This is real, there is something out there. Are you listening to me?!”

I went downstairs and picked Josie up, then looked out the  door. Nothing. “Whatever was there is gone, honey.” So we could see more of the yard, I went into the sunroom, and there was a raccoon, staring at me from the crotch of the sweet cherry tree. This tree is loaded with fruit and under attack from every animal around. The other day, we found a deer cleaning out the lower branches.

So I shut Josie in the sunroom and powerwashed that sucker out of the tree. The end.

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Josie and the Vet

I took Josie to the vet today for her distemper vaccination and also a heartworm test. She barked at another dog in the lobby (not uncommon) and shook like a leaf (quite uncommon), but she made nary a peep when the thermometer slid in, and she went off with the doctor without any whimpering. While she was gone, however, I heard quite a lot of high-pitched dog crying. The vet came back with Josie resting over his arm.

“Was she a little drama queen?” I asked.

“Hmm? Oh, no. That was another dog. She was perfect.” He filled out Josie’s vaccination form and then looked down and realized he was still holding her. “I guess I should give her back. She’s so light, I forgot she was there.”

As for weight, Josie has been 3.5 pounds her entire adult life. She’s had a very active spring, however, and is well-muscled, so I thought she might be a little heavier. I put her on the platform scale and told her to sit.

“Three pounds, eight ounces,” the receptionist announced.

So there you go. She’s nothing if not consistent.

 

A rose by any other name would still have those stupid thorns.

I was outside when I heard Josie give an unhappy squeak. I found her with her tail stuck to the neighbor’s rose bush. After I untangled her, she asked to go inside, apparently fed up with nature. I’m betting mastiffs don’t have these issues. Other issues, but not these.

Morning Chihuahua