Bringing in the Pro

Well. Booker bit Samantha. The quiet, gentle teenager of the house. It's not a bad bite, actually, not much more than a scratch on one finger.

But it was frightening. And Samantha, in her determined, non-flexible way, has closed her door, literally. She has had enough. Booker is high maintenance.

So tomorrow, we have an appointment with a trainer, Mark Coe of Sit means Sit. I need a different perspective. I need someone to tell me "yes, stick with it," or "you will never be able to trust this dog."

Our family has 7 months invested in loving Booker. He is a great great dog in so many ways. He doesn't chew or destroy or mess, he is crate-trained, he is housebroken. He doesn't bark inside. He walks like a dream on the leash. But I don't want to feel like I have to rationalize and "forgive" his huge failing as a housepet. He has this "cujo" demon that is not acceptable to wage upon anyone in the house. It feels dangerous at times and while I feel confident that I can deal with it, I do not live alone.

I am thinking good thoughts for the rescue -- the TOTAL rescue -- of Booker. We will see what tomorrow brings.

Meanwhile, the small human is barricaded in her room.

Something to prove

Booker got wind (with his hound-dog nose) of a rumour about his less than manly behavior during recent fireworks and thunderstorms.

This morning, he hit the dog park with something to prove.

It took less than 5 minutes for him to determine that a raccoon was up a tree. He then opted to spend his park-hour aggressively trying to dismantle the banyan, climb it, or get someone to SHOOT the 'coon.

H-Mom gave up trying to coax him away from the tree. "If that's how he opts to spend his time at the dog park, let him at it," she said.

"At least it's good cardio," a friend observed.

After an hour, he had to be snapped into his prong collar and led away, howling, from the park. His frustration was tangible.

Booker was so wiped out, he couldn't even stand for the car ride home. The photo is blurry because he was panting heavily.

Please, don't infer that Booker is a coward, or less-than-worthy hunting partner.

At least not within earshot ...

Excellent Camouflage

Boy this guy had terrific camouflage. He almost matched the tree. Rick just about grabbed him when he was "rubbing the trunk" to dislodge little lizards for Davis to chase. We left this prehistoric-looking creature alone. He was almost a foot long and no one wanted to clean up guts or pull his carcass out from between Davis' teeth. If Rick would have grabbed it, he probably would have jumped a mile and H-Mom would have screamed. She's not scared, just easily surprised.

It was thundering all morning while we were at the dog park. No rain, big noise. Booker is having minor panic attacks, ever since the Fourth of July. The rumbling in the sky had him hanging close to H-Mom all morning. He was whining and acting a little agitated. It was a bit embarrassing in front of the all the other dogs, who didn't even look at the threatening clouds, and their humans, but everyone was very understanding.

We are beginning to suspect that his first "home" in South Carolina determined that Booker wasn't going to be much of a coon-hunter. He is a natural tracker, knows how to "tree," and has a great choppy tracking bark. But, the sound of a shotgun might have sent him running to the next county. Or perhaps he associates neglect and abuse with loud explosions. Whatever it was, it's a bad memory for Booker, and he has been having some Post-Traumatic Stress for the past two weeks. If there is a loud BANG, he melts into the picture of a dog under heavy military attack. He cannot get home fast enough, his tail between his legs, slinking furtively along the pavement, until he is safe behind the condo's Hurricane-rated (and sound-proof) windows.

Name Game

Booker was tagged by Brandy to play the NameGame. Here goes:


What is your name?

Booker

If you could change your name, what would it be?

Booker P. Washington. It's much more formal and has a dignified air.
Although, those of you who know me, KNOW what the "P." stands for.

What is your pet's name (it can be a webkinz or a real pet)?

My imaginary pet is CatDog.

If you could change your pet's name what would it be?

DogCat. The DOG would have to come first.

What is your brother or sister's name?

As far as I know, I am alone in this world. It is a lonely world, like a CatDog world. Except for my forever family, of course, which includes Samantha, who is kind of like my H-Sister, although she wholly disapproves of any hint of anthromophism. This would probably include my referring to her as "H-Sister." She believes that H-Mom is obsessed in a most unhealthy and frighteningly tenuous manner.

If you could change their name, what would it be?

Ahhhhhhhhhhh .... how about SamCat? meowwwwwwwwwwwwww ...

P.S. We will defer the tagging to those in the know. Our circle is growing, but still quite limited and we see that many have already been tapped to play the Name Game!

Shopaholic

H-Mom is obsessed.

At least that's what David says. She bought a little bag that clips on the leash. It's for carrying poopbags and a tiny ziplock baggie of treats for bribing Booker into good behavior or rewarding him for things well-done. This is by "Bella Bags" and she found it at our favorite place for shopping, The Doggy Store in Fort Lauderdale.

Little things make H-Mom so happy.

Fairy Ring

A Fairy Ring appeared magically overnight in the park where we walk every day.

It was beautiful, a symphony of giant, sparkling white mushrooms. H-Mom doesn't know what kind they are, but she thinks they are a poisonous type from what she found on the Web. Anyway, we didn't touch them. The ring was too pretty. Some people say that a Fairy Ring is bad luck, but others say that it predicts very good fortune, and might even be a sign that there is hidden treasure! In folklore, Fairy Rings are said to be the place where elves gather at night to dance.

When H-Mom was growing up in France, she knew lots of people who went "mushrooming" on the weekends. People are very brave to eat wild mushrooms -- we would hesitate to taste them even if they were collected by an "expert." We will stick to buying our mushrooms at Publix.

Wild mushrooms are plentiful in South Florida in the summer, which is our rainy season. They appear when a few days of heavy rain are followed by dryer, sunny days. This is exactly what the weather as been this week. Golf courses are not very keen on them, as they pop up very quickly and ruin the "look" of the course by creating a circle of dead grass or discoloration. Lawncare resources call Fairy Rings a "disease."

Booker didn't smell anything interesting in our Fairy Ring, so we didn't disturb a thing. Maybe the fairies will come back and dance again tonight.

It looks more like magic than "disease"!

Hatchling

Look what H-mom and the H-mans spotted at the dog park this morning. None of us dogs noticed it, which is really good because Rick's Golden Retriever, Davis, is lizard-crazy. Davis chases them and KILLS them. He is fast - a lot faster than most lizards! This isn't just a "regular" little Florida lizard. It is a green iguana hatchling. Can you see the markings on his tail? He was hanging onto the fence really tight and not moving at all. He was bright green, which is the only reason anyone saw him at all. He should have been hiding in the trees. There, he would blend right in.

Iguanas are not native to Florida, but they do very well if they make it out of captivity and into the wild. They are not protected because they have overrun many areas. They dig holes in gardens, undermine seawalls and eat vegetation. In the garden, they make a huge mess. Last summer, Fort Lauderdale authorities encouraged homeowners to "humanely dispose" of iguanas found in their yards. A heavy shovel was recommended. They are not aggressive, and usually run from people or animals, but they can deliver a wicked bite, have very sharp claws and can SLAM you with their long tail. They can grow in excess of 5 feet.

H-Mom just loves a "nature moment." She whipped out her phone and was taking pictures! She has lots more of this guy, but this is the best one.