This weekend we’re dogsitting daughter Karen’s Golden Retriever, Ishka (short for Uisgebagh, which is Gaelic for whiskey). Ishka, you will remember, if you read My Doggie Says…, was Jamie’s best pal. Ishka and Jamie were born within a few weeks of each other, and they were best friends right from their puppy days. Sometimes they played so hard you thought they would just melt into a little puppy puddle. At 12 1/2 years-old, Ishka goes pretty slow, so it’s interesting to watch the interaction between 6-month-old Callie, always full of puppy energy, and Ishka.
Here’s a photo from My Doggie Says… of Ishka (on the left) and Jamie at Lake Arrowhead.
But first two news items of importance:
The LA Times has an article today about using DNA testing to determine the genetic makeup of mutts. (“Decoding the secret lives of dogs,” LA Times, June 24, 2007.) If you’re really interested in understanding your dog — and nurturing it — this seems like a great idea. If you’re not sure about your dog’s genetics, why not find out? It seems like it could only help you understand your dog’s personality a little better.
On a tragic, and somewhat personal note, the Daily Breeze (serving the South Bay area of Los Angeles) has a very sad story today: El Segundo police dog killed in hit and run. The Dutch Shepherd, Basco, was a five-year veteran and hero of the El Segundo police department.
Somtimes things come together in strange ways. In March, I was the emcee for a dog walk in Redondo Beach called “Fido and Friends.” It was a fundraiser for the Wellness Community, a wonderful organization that serves cancer patients. Basco, the dog who was killed yesterday, was the star of “Fido and Friends.” He and another Dutch Shepherd gave a demonstration of their skills. The other dog’s handler, a different Officer Ken, is a friend of mine, and it turns out that last year he, too, lost a magnificent dog in a tragic accident. To put a final note on all this sadness, I saw (the other) Officer Ken Thursday night, at the viewing for our mutual good friend and shared veterinarian, Dr. Chris Omoto Beezley.
We’re all bonded to our pets, but imagine the bond and trust between our police officers and their canine pals. There are times when the lives of both man and dog depend on doing exactly the right thing at the right time. So, Officer Ken, we share the loss of a very special veterinarian and a very special dog.
On a cheerier side, we picked up Ishka on Saturday morning for the ride to Lake Arrowhead. Callie was all strapped into the back seat of our car with her puppy safety harness, but she had lots of room to maneuver. So when I lifted Ishka onto the car seat, Callie — in her puppy jubilance — jumped on Ishka and got her puppy harness hopelessly tangled up with Ishka and Ishka’s leash. Total puppy spaghetti!
Once we got the puppy spaghetti sorted out, we made our way to Lake Arrowhead, which is about a two-hour drive from Karen’s house. In the winter, it’s often around fifteen or twenty degrees cooler here at 5,000 feet elevation, but in the summer the daytime temperatures are about the same as down below. The air is refreshing and it’s a great place for doggies.
It’s a great place for doggies, so long as they stay away from the coyotes. There are plenty of coyotes around; we don’t see one every time we come here, but they’re not scarce. So it does seem a little strange that we spotted coyotes on our property twice yesterday. Callie’s always on a leash, but the coyotes may be paying attention.
Callie spotted something last night, when she was out on our deck, and she barked her first bark! It was probably either a racoon or a coyote — we didn’t see it — but Callie did. We were starting to wonder if she could bark. Now we know. At almost six months old, she has a great Golden Retriever bark.
These days the dynamic between Callie and Ishka is pretty much Callie trying to initiate play and Ishka saying “bug off!” And Callie’s very respectful. She tries a few times to get some play started, and then she goes about her business. I don’t know if this is because Ishka is the alpha animal, or because Callie just respects her elders. But last night Callie did something very cute — probably quite symbolic in a wolf pack world: She carried her favorite toy (a little stuffed dog) over to where Ishka was lying, and she dropped it right at Ishka’s front paws. And then Callie walked away and started to play with another toy. In the wolf pack world of alpha dominance and submission, this must be pretty close to the ultimate message that a doggie can send.
