I have a 20 pound dog who thinks she weighs 100 lbs.  Phoebe isn’t an overweight dog by any stretch of the imagination.  She has an overabundance of energy, partially because she eats healthy dog food and partially because Jack Russell Terriers are incapable of sitting still. In fact, it’s safe to say that she’s either asleep or running… Nowhere in-between. 

I guess that’s why every time I take her out for a dog walk, I assume, foolishly, that things will be different.  I’m wrong every single time. It seems whatever is happening at the end of our walk is better than the beginning. When Phoebe gets to the end, she looks back at me as if to say, “What’s TAKING you so long???”  I do my best to keep up.  Of course, she is attached (against her will) to me via a 20-foot lead rather than a standard dog leash.  It’s the illusion of freedom for her.  Since my dog loves running so much, I really believe that without the lead, she would send me a postcard from somewhere out West. The other day we were moving along at our standard pace - Phoebe dragging me behind -when she suddenly stopped to smell something.  (That’s not a new thing)  The whole dynamic changed.  She saw a small child, who CLEARLY required licking, roughly 100 feet away.  You would think my dog had never seen a person before.  She raced forward pulling me behind her.  We were both panting by the time we reached the little boy, who then received a greeting from Phoebe that was as though she found a long lost relative.  

After some time they said their goodbyes and we headed home.  I was sweating but somewhat relieved that I now didn’t have to go to the gym. As we walked in the house, she looked at me with her, “Thank you for taking me mommy” face.  A face all dog lovers understand and cannot resist! I am now beginning to wonder if my Jack Russell Terrier understands that if she takes me out on the walk I will stay home with her instead of going to the gym myself… Humm… better get her some healthy dog treats for her next time.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 1st, 2008 at 11:58 am and is filed under Natural Pet Care, Pet Health, Pet Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.