Saturday, November 26, 2011

How Sleeping Dogs Lie

When my three dogs return from their stay at the B&B, they are delirious with exhaustion.  Lexi walks into the house, gets a drink of water, lowers herself carefully down on the kitchen floor, and does not move until the next morning.  Bisou becomes more aggressive in her snuggling, pushing hard against my thigh while we sit on the sofa and somehow keeping up the pressure even after she has fallen asleep.  If for any reason I have to dislodge her, the effort is entirely up to me.  It is surprising how heavy an 18.5 lb dog can make herself when she doesn't want to be moved.

But it is Wolfie whose reentry is the most dramatic.  After a cursory sniff of our luggage, he becomes at-one with the floor the way a fried egg becomes one with the frying pan. His collapse is so complete that I catch myself checking his ribcage for signs of breath.  He doesn't look like a dog lying on a rug:  he looks like a dog pelt that has been flung on the floor.

All this is good news for me, since it allows me to recover from the trip that was the reason for the dogs' stay at the B&B.  They have had so much entertainment that I can go a good couple of days without having to think up diversions for them. 

After four days in the bosom of her Cavalier tribe--which includes her mother, a couple of aunties and two of her sisters--Bisou is glad to swap her enfant terrible mask for a temporary lapdog disguise.  Lexi is happy to lie all day with her nose in her empty food bowl.  As for Wolfie--whose exhaustion comes mostly from having to keep track of Lexi and Bisou among all the other canine guests at the B&B--you can almost feel his relief at getting his little pack home, where nothing will interfere with them, except himself.

4 comments :

  1. Love the egg in a frying pan analogy. Nothing is as delightful for a dog's human companion as having a happy but exhausted dog - at least for this human companion. Mika by contrast comes back from her kennel rested and ready for action: I inevitably spend her first day back playing with her, letting her swim, and topping off with a long walk. Whew. Truthfully, though, I enjoy seeing her so full of energy.

    18.5 lbs? So the diet is working?

    ReplyDelete
  2. I can make my dogs lose weight just like that! Too bad they can't reciprocate.

    ReplyDelete
  3. How is it possible that I who don't like to read blogs or post a comment or even like dogs find myself reading every word that Lali Cobb writes, and I'm getting up in the middle of the night to open up my screen in hopes of the next adventure?
    I've become addicted to her life in Vermont. I hope I don't have to get three dogs, but I might.
    Emily in North Carolina

    ReplyDelete
  4. Emily, you do know how to make a writer feel good! And just one dog would do fine.

    ReplyDelete

Followers