PETS, REAL AND IMAGINED.
Pets, Real and Imagined
Mars and Andie
My FUNNY FURRY FRIENDS
Mars and Andie were first seen walking down a country road together, their knapsacks over their shoulders, they were each then no bigger than a baseball, but such cute little furry baseballs, and they were black with white markings. The Santa Cruz SPCA found them and when I met them, they were together in one kennel, rolled up together like Yin and Yang.
They came home with me, Mars was always first, Andie demurely deferred to her bigger brother. But she was the brain behind this operation. She showed Mars how to run in the grass and together they looked like dolphins playing in the sea. Now you see them, now they are below the level of the tall grass.
They both love to swim. Mars has always been heavier than Andie, so his dives into moderately deep water would frequently end in bellyflops. This didn't stop him though. He would bellyflop into the water and wait, (I mean dare)Andie to jump in.
During the rainy season, they still insisted on going into the water, sometimes the water was moving swiftly. One time Andie jumped into the fast-moving stream and started paddling up-stream to catch Mars, as she usually did. But, this time she couldn't get there, the current was too strong. It was even too strong for her to get back to the shore and climb out. Mars saw this and climbed out of the water ran along stream to get ahead of Andie, and went into the water, grabbed Andie by the back with his teeth and paddled to shore. He stayed in the water until he was able to push Andie up to safety. From that day on, Mars never let his eyes off of Andie when they were near the water--and rescued her a few more times before me moved away.
Mars has a very strong silent type of personality. He knows what he wants. And, he gently insists on getting it. He does have a bad habit of nudging Andie out of the way when he wants affection. He wants it all. But, if Andie is getting gentle care, he sits and watches carefully, making sure that she is not going to be hurt. A few times when I have given her a hug, she has "yipped". I must have been pinching her with a belt or something, but Mars was right there, to get between Andie and the offender. He is really protective.
He is protective of me, too. When I let them out in the morning for their morning constitutional, it is early, and I am still wanting sleep. So, like good little kids, they play quietly, eating their breakfast until their plates are cleaned. Periodically, Mars comes in to check on Mom, to see if I am waking up yet. He turns down the covers ever so gently to peek at me; if he sees I am still asleep, he puts the covers back and continues to play for a bit more. When my eyes are open, they seem to sense that I am waking before I know I am. I open my eyes and they are both sitting beside my bed, waiting to greet me in the morning, for hugs and talk about the day to come.
Now the fun starts. For them, and for me! When I have to go to work, they have to be good quiet little dogs. Wrong! They have been walking me to the car, kissing me goodbye, begging to go, and when I say "No, I have to go to work, " Mars didn't seem to need more than that. He was on his way Back down the walk to Homebase. They have always been at Homebase, when I got home. But, that isn't where they've been all day.
It took a while for me to find out that they have been hanging out at the neighbors, trying to get acquainted with folks who were not available for a social dog 'tea'. They were gallavanting all over the place, and when they met a bigger dog who might be the neighborhood bully, they would then decide to run for cover, to the safety of their Homebase.
So, now, they are confined to the porch again. We have to find a way for them to hang out together for the days when I am away, and still be the well-behaved people-dogs that they are when I am home. I am going to play music for them. I leave the light on for them. And, if I can figure out how, I will give them some old socks (phew!) of mine to enjoy.
Below are a few pictures of my precious babies.
