What Mysteries Lurk Behind Those Tails?
Plus, hot dogs, origin stories, traveling with dogs, Emmy.
How do I know when our neighbor is on a walk with Coco? Shiloh loses her mind with barking, growling, whimpering, and pawing at windows. Spittle covers the panes. Scratches are left in the wood. It’s not odd that Shiloh reacts to a dog in her territory, it’s odd that Shiloh’s outsized reaction is to a Coco we almost never see. She and Ben, who live three houses away, can leave their home without passing ours. Even more intriguing is that Shiloh has met Coco only once.
In what can only be described as a freak set of circumstances, Coco was attacked while out on a walk. Her collar broke in the scuffle. As she darted from her attacker, she ran into me and Shiloh. My calf became the recipient of Coco’s adrenaline, while Shiloh remained unscathed. Shiloh might not have been physically harmed, but her “Coco radar” formed instantly. That specialized detector allows her to know things in a manner that remain a mystery to me.
I was curious to know how other people’s pets befuddle them. Two Substack writers share head-scratching stories that will leave you trying to solve their puzzles.
I met Brisa Carleton at a book marketing class with eight other soon-to-be authors. It wasn’t just Brisa’s upcoming novel, Last Call at the Savoy, that was intriguing but that she’s managed to remain humble and thoughtful through a jet-setting life as a Tony Award-winning Broadway producer and head of the Princess Grace Foundation. She is glitz and glamour and a whole lot of wit that she packages in her must-read newsletter Delightful. Delicious. De-Lovely!
“The Curious Case of the Jet-Setting Rawhide My long-haired chihuahua, Mister Big, is a seasoned traveler with more international experience than most influencers and a signature move worthy of a spy novel. Before every trip, he somehow manages to smuggle a rawhide chew into my suitcase. Not the one I’ve already packed for him. A separate one. A secret one. I never see him do it. Ever. The bag will be zipped, the room seemingly dog-free and yet, when I arrive in London or Monaco and unpack, there it is: a single, neatly placed rawhide, tucked like a stowaway between stilettos or in a sock. He’s even slipped them into guests’ bags. I inevitably get the text: “Did your dog pack for me?” At this point, he has rawhides stashed in three time zones. I don’t know if he’s planning for contingencies or just marking territory, but one thing’s clear, Mister Big never travels unprepared.”
Judy Jennings is a writer and pet advocate who touches my soul with her passion for senior pups. Her experience in rescue is her springboard for stories in her Once Cherished, Always Cherished: Soft Landings For Old Dogs newsletter. There she shares adoption and pet care tips while also showcasing dogs in the Cherished Tails Senior Sanctuary program in need of homes.
“Shadow’s most legendary escape was from the Pug Halloween Party at Rebecca and Bob’s. Shadow was half Pug, and we made the list. The festivities were out back by the pool. Shadow hated water so he didn’t try to jump in, and also, I had a firm grip on his leash. “Oh, come on, let the poor dog have some fun!” Rebecca said, glaring at me. Her five Pugs encircled her ankles freely as she assessed me critically. I cracked. Unclipping the leash against my better judgment, I told myself it would probably be okay this time. “Don’t worry, there’s no way he can get out,” Rebecca assured me. Chain link surrounding the back and a six-foot adobe wall enclosing the front lulled me into a false sense of security, and I let Shadow run off to investigate my friend’s acre. Occasionally he would trot by to check out the action, never lingering.
Suddenly, I realized it had been toooo long. Where was Shadow? Rebecca was confident he couldn’t have gotten out, so I searched alone for a while, but there were lots of hiding places. Eventually a search party mobilized when he didn’t turn up. We checked every inch of the fence and found nary a chink. It was impossible for him to have gotten out. My phone rang. “I have Shadow here in my apartment,” a woman’s voice told me. “He trotted in like he owns the place.” I hustled over and collected him from an address three blocks down the street. When we got back, the party had moved into an inner courtyard secured by a medieval-looking wooden gate. Bob pulled it shut and slid over an iron latch that closed with an authoritative thunk. Whew! Shadow was contained at last! We polished off the libations, shaking our heads in wonder. How had he done it? Usually when you hear someone tell a story about a Pug Halloween party, it’s about the costumes.”
DOG DAYS OF SUMMER
Dogs have become like diamonds. We don’t wear them, but we put them on parade beside us on hot sidewalks, shoulder to shoulder in our cars, and sitting with us in hot sand on sweltering beaches. Dr. Nancy Kay of Speaking for Spot outlines how dogs are different than humans when it comes to dissipating heat. Read her comprehensive list of pointers for helping your dog through the heat of the summer.
YOUR PET IS NOT THEIR ORIGIN STORY
Kristi Keller’s newsletter, Dog Snobs, featured a cross-post by dog trainer Karl Anthony. In it, he provides a provocative viewpoint that continuing to label a dog as “a rescue” after adoption may actually prevent that dog from thriving. When we continue to use “rescue” to label our pets, it may keep us from seeing beyond what happened to them to what they are capable of becoming. Our own limits may limit our pets. Check it out.
TRAVELING WITH DOGS
If you love dog stories, you’ll love the summer issue of Ruff Drafts, the quarterly newsletter of the Dog Writers Association of America. It’s devoted to traveling with dogs – with a few cats snuck in for good measure. Page 14 is a story of my honeymoon where Three’s Company, Four’s a Crowd.
THE REAL DOGS OF THE QUAD PRESS
My “pet” project of late has been writing a monthly article for my local paper, The Quad Press. I get to interview neighbors to about write their dogs. No drama. No politics. 100% dogs. My recent story featured Emmy – a brindled dog of seven breeds. No one has guessed her heritage. Can you?
I love love love that you are writing pieces for the newspaper. I have decided to highlight creatives and their relationships with their pets. Go us!
That pic of Mr Big in the aviation goggles ❤️😍