Blogging the dog

Yesterday an older woman from my apartment complex who has recently gotten a replacement for her beloved departed dog stopped me as Em and I were walking to the park.

"She's such a well-mannered dog." she said with a smile. I've never seen her smile before.

Those who know Emolina know that she is just that. She's a super dog, truly exceptional, and I don't think I say that just because she likes me. But I don't hear it much spontaneously on the street. Might be her shepherdness, might be the neighborhood, might be that I'm just a standoffish bitch but we just don't get that very often. It's nice.

Last month Kath & Alex were kind enough to keep the pooch for a few days while I visited the fam and ate a bunch of lobster (thanks TG!). It was a last minute deal and I thought it was a huge imposition. K&A disagreed. They lost their marvelous Cameron in February and they seem to really have enjoyed having a a dog around. They walked her all over creation and they tried to feed her decadent things and let her sleep on the bed but she wasn't having any of it. She gets a big case of the left-behinds when she's, well, left behind. I knew she'd get treated well, as the photo above attests. No dog who has an average of 4 people in the room ready to pet her at any one time while she lounges on the ottoman is doing too badly.

There was another little reason I thought it would be good to have her hang with the folks. Em is my first dog. It was a surprise to get her. And I'm not a big old research type, I learn as I go and I know that I've made some mistakes but clearly (thank goodness) not enough to make her unbearable to those around us. Kath often takes care of other people's dogs. And occasionally while we're walking doing something else she'll talk about those experiences. She almost always notices something that the owners haven't yet. One is getting arthritis, one needs a choke collar, one is a fighter and needs training. I was hoping she'd notice the one thing about me, the thing I'm doing wrong and tell me about it.

So far no dice, though. Maybe this entry will prompt her.

Kath & Alex have started the dicey process of looking for a new dog. Purely by accident she ran into a dog at the corner vet. He isn't the dog for them but he's a fabulous dog, according to the woman to whom I entrust my own dog, so she's committed to finding him a home.

The people at the vet are calling him Bobby Vanderbilt. He's 1-2 years old, he's house trained, he's good with all manner of other animals, he's even good on a leash. I don't know that he's been neutered yet but that can easily and quickly be arranged. Looks to be a golden/shepherd mix. If you know anyone that might be interested let me know and I'll put them in touch. He's in Brooklyn right now but we could probably work out a transport arrangements.