top of page

Doggie burnout

Do you ever get sick of your routine and less motivated to do the things that used to be fun? My morning patrols of My Trail are always the same, and most mornings when Mom gets the leash I just lay on the couch and stare at her balefully. Even though I’ve seen it all, now that it’s dark and I can’t see anything it’s even more of a grind to go out there and run for an hour. Sometimes I think about resigning as mayor of My Trail and getting a different job. Mom says that’s called being “in a butt” (at least that’s what I think that she said, she’s a mumbler).

It would be nice to go for a promotion to take over other patrol routes somewhere out in the back country, but unfortunately this dog’s got responsibilities. I’ve got to get Mom home in time to get to her people daycare (where they tie her to a desk all day long). Meanwhile, Mom is in a butt too. She says she’s tired of being crated all day long and wants to go on adventures full time too. But for someone who daydreams about adventures, she’s been “too lazy” to take us on weekend adventures the past few weekends. So instead we’ve been taking a lot of walks around the neighborhood.

The only one that isn’t in a butt is Bodie. When we go out for our walks, she darts back and forth with her eyes on the power lines and the trees looking for exciting critters. Mom puts Bodie on a longer leash than mine so that she’s not tripping us, but that just means that her tail smacks me in the face every time she runs from one side to the other. (Talk about being stuck in a butt!) When she gets too excited Mom makes us stop and back up until we both sit, and then we get a treat. I love treats, so I sit down right away and stare at Mom like a good boy, because I’m a responsible dog. But Bodie loves squirrels, so she strains against her leash and continues to stare at the power lines and the trees. She makes me wait forever for my treat while Mom calls her name, claps, snaps, and pokes her haunch. Treats are the highlight of my day, but Bodie doesn’t need treats because she can find excitement in more wholesome activities.

“Don’t you see that this is just the same dumb neighborhood we walk around every day?” I asked her the last time she dragged me and Mom out on patrol at top speed. “But maybe there is danger afoot! There could be cats under any one of these parked cars! At some time this morning –I don’t know when– a squirrel or a bunny is going to run by and it’s going to be AWESOME!” Maybe if I were more of a rebel like Bodie I could find adventure in my everyday routine. But to get out of this butt that I’m in, I feel like I need a long vacation from the daily responsibilities of my Trail Patrols. I dream of going somewhere with whole pastures of moo-cows to bark at, and herds of bunnies to chase, and I wouldn’t even need treats to be excited.

Oscar the Pooch

21463154_1645493658802973_8379361837988048622_n

Komentarze


bottom of page