Today was my Luigi’s 12th birthday. We started it off right and the way he wanted, playing fetch with one of his favorite toys, the Goughnut. It’s a tough rubber toy that has lasted a couple years.
He ate breakfast, took a nap, and then joined me on some errands. He’s not exactly fond of taking rides, but he doesn’t object. Now a days, it’s a little harder for him to jump into the truck, and as a matter of fact, he couldn’t do it today. So I had him put his front legs in and I got under his back legs and gave him a boost. That took care of the entry. It’s times like these when having had trained a dog all his life comes in handy, too. He trusted me when I positioned him for the lift, and it went off smoothly as if we’d been doing it for years.
Luigi enjoyed the breeze from the opened windows and is one of the best back seat drivers around. He’s very quiet for the most part except when he gets antsy, which isn’t too often. We had a little trouble, though, when we arrived back home. I thought he could handle the jump out of the back seat, but he took a bit of a tumble. I had his harness on, and pulled him up from a complete fall. We will be careful now on both entries and exits from the truck. I may have to pull our ramp out from storage.
Mother Nature gave us quite a rainstorm this afternoon, and Luigi took a long nap while I took a short one. He joined me in the bed, and when I left, he followed me and took his place on the futon behind me while I got some work done on the computer. He’s my buddy. When I made dinner, he hung out by the opened back door and brought me his glow ball. We played fetch and I still managed to make dinners and stuff his Kong with birthday cake.
He knew that Kong was his as he rushed through dinner just like a kid, and didn’t even lick his bowl clean because he was anxious to get to it. We had to put a candle in it first, and sang happy birthday to the handsomest of handsome before asking him to make his wish. He did, then blew out the candle, and was on his way with his Kong to the futon where he cleaned it out nicely.
He still has a surprise toy coming to him, but that will have to wait until tomorrow. Due to the rains, we didn’t get to finish the day as planned. Besides, Luigi’s decided that everyday should be his birthday, so getting his official present tomorrow should suit him fine.
It’s the day-to-day simple things in life that are really the big things. Don’t you think? These are indeed, the good ol’ days.
Your dog’s birthday can be most enjoyable with very little effort. All that’s needed is some time and knowing what your dog likes to do then, doing it.
Happy birthday, Luigi!
By Helen Verte
Certified Pet Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed, Certified Trick Dog Instructor
Dobermann Luigi’s Mom
