The sniffingest, tinklingest dog

I don’t pretend to have a lot of experience with dogs. I have never lived (other than briefly when visiting friends) with a dog. I am a cat lady.

Speaking of which…

It was cold enough to get the fire going for the first time the other night. Maisie approved.

Anyway… I probably don’t need all the fingers of both hands to count the number of dogs I have spent time with over the years. So this statement is not extremely well researched.

I think Dexter may be one of the sniffingest, tinklingest dogs ever.

We always go for the same walk. (There’s a reason for this that I will go into later.) There is a log at the trail head and he always has to announce his arrival before we set foot on the trail.

Every piece of pee mail must be investigated.

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A walk that would take 45 minutes with Georgie can last well over an hour with Dexter. I’m pretty sure it’s a boy dog thing, but, as I said, I can’t pretend to have a lot of knowledge on the subject. Just as well, really, I suppose. He’s an energetic little guy and all these stops allow me to keep up with him once he’s off leash.

You’re spoiled for choice for walks here. There are beach walks. There are wooded walks. There are a few that give you both. So, why the same walk every time with Dexter?

When Jean asked me, shortly after Dexter came into her life, if I would be willing to take him for a walk on the days she was working from home, I said sure and he came with me very willingly. We did beach walks; we did wooded walks. Then one day, as soon as I unclipped his leash, he stopped dead in his tracks. A bit of cajoling (tummy tickles were helpful) seemed to do the trick and get him moving again. Commented on this to Jean when I got him home. We just assumed he was a bit of a chancer.

And then there was the day when he not only flat out refused to take another forward step, but instead turning determinedly back towards home. Well, it was raining. Jeez, I thought, this dog really does not like getting wet. Surprised Jean by returning so quickly. She ordered him a rain jacket.

It kept happening. I had to keep Dexter’s leash on for most of our walks. Otherwise he would just turn around. We finally figured out that in the early days, when he wasn’t completely bonded with Jean, he was willing to go with anyone. Those days were over. Now, being separated made him anxious.

So I thought perhaps it would be a good idea to avoid walks he did with her and stick to one walk she never does with him. (It’s a bit too up and down for her bad knee.) The idea was that this would become our walk. It seems to have worked, although I do still keep his leash on for the first (most tinklingest) part of the trail.

Aside from Dexter being a total kewtie petewtie and the benefit of getting exercise on days when I’m not out walking with Joe and Georgie, there is one big payoff. As soon as I get him home, he goes straight up to Jean, sitting at her desk, and always does this.

Oh My God.