If Your Dog is Fat, You Aren't Getting Enough Exercise -

If your dog is fat, you aren't getting enough exercise.

Some pretty smart human named Anonymous said that.

I am not fat, but I have put on a pound or two this summer. While we were living at Chica's house-without-wheels, Sage or Skooba or Lone Duck took me for nice long walks. Then we came home and, although Dad takes me for walks a couple of times every day, he still isn't ready for very long ones yet. Besides it's really boring around here, and there's no place to go where there isn't traffic.

Mom doesn't walk very well because her eyes don't work too good, so she doesn't go very often. She and Chica pretend they are throwing things at the TeeVee and wiggle a lot on something called a Wii and say they are exercising.

BUT last week we went to that place they call the Farmers Market. I usually enjoy that place because there's lots of people and even kids there. They all pet me and give me treats and drinks from their hands.

The people who sell things let me sit under their tables in the shade and they all call me by my real names. You know...Sweetie, Precious, Adorable, Cutie,and Awwwwwe, those names. I wonder how they know my real names!?

Well anyway, I was really excited when we got to the Farmers' Market 'cause I knew we'd have a good time. Mom went off toward the barn and Dad took me down to the fence. We saw a table with some people and a lot of other dogs. There was a big Mastiff and a spaniel pup. A beagle I met once before named Roxie was sitting there, and I thought we were going to have a party.

Uh... I was wrong! Dad picked me up and put me on the table and the next thing I knew...

Ouch!

I was just about to tell them they should have warned me when they did it again in my other shoulder! What did they think I was - a pincushion? Why did Dad let them do that to me?

Who did they think I was? At least Snoopy had a scarf when the Baron was shooting him!

Okay, maybe it wasn't quite that bad. Once they stopped shooting me with those pointy things, Dad and I went to find Mom. A little while later, they sat down to have a rest and a drink and they gave me one too under the table. I guess they forgot I was there because I heard them talking about a secret plan. They said that now that I had my current vaccines that sometime this week they would take me to the DOG PARK !

Oh boy, do I love DOG PARKS! I always get to meet new friends and run around naked! No leash! They let me stay as long as I want if it's not too hot or cold. Sometimes, Dad walks around with me or throws the frisbee but usually I just like to explore every single inch of the place.

You never know what you'll find at a DOG PARK. When Makita and I went to the park in Bellingham, Washington it was my very first one. At first I was a little shy, but then I figured out that I wasn't going to get in trouble for running as far and as fast as I could go. I wasn't used to that because every time I'd slipped my collar and done it before, I'd gotten in a lot of trouble and had to "Get on my Bed"-never a good thing. So at first I just stayed right there by Dad and Skooba; but then Makita showed me how it was supposed to work and I had a really good time.

All the humans started laughing when I got the big dogs all together and got them to go where I wanted. They told me afterward that I could heard them like that because I was a cattle dog. I was having so much fun I didn't want to tell them that sheperds and labs and retrievers, and especially Makita, were not cattle.

We've been to a few DOG PARKS since then, and I've liked them all, even though a couple of times I was the only one there. That wasn't as much fun as having races, but Dad and I played ball so we had a good time anyway.

We went to a really neat DOG PARK in Seward, Nebraska one time and there were lots of other dogs. We had a great time but for some reason our humans all got ready to leave about the same time. One after another, from the other side of the park, we heard whistles and calls. (Do you know that humans are a lot like birds? They all whistle differently. In fact, Dad can't even whistle so Mom has to do it for him.)

Anyway, we had discovered something on the far side of the park and as each of us was called, we ran through a wonderful oozy muddy spot and then rolled in the dead squirrel on the other side. The humans weren't too happy, but it was the perfect ending to a perfect day.

Well, this was the longest D-log I've written, I think. But I have a secret plan too. Maybe if I write all about DOG PARKS and how much I like them, they will get the hint. After all, it's been a whole week since they stuck me with those needles!

Woof at you later,
Clancy