This is Cooper and he is a bad dog. For those unfamiliar, Cooper is the oldest and largest of the Muttville Mutts weighing in at about 150, give or take a few. He is not generally a bad dog. To put it in kind terms, he lacks the imagination and motivation needed to pull off any seriously bad behavior. (dumb as dirt) The most annoying things he does is block any and all floor space (making walking through the house a slightly more aerobic activity) and drool. The drooling can be a little disgusting, but he is half St. Bernard and the loose lips come with the breed. We love him anyway. He is generally perfectly happy to let Samten, the smaller and wiser of the Mutts, do most of the dirty work.
There are only two things that can cause Cooper to rise from his sedentary life and pretty much lose his mind; coyotes and kids on skateboards. Luckily, we don't see too many coyotes, but our neighborhood is heavily populated with kids on skateboards. The Mutts are kept within their yard boundaries by means of an invisible fence. They wear collars that warn them with a beep when are are near the boundary, and a little electrical buzz when they actually cross it. Kids on bikes and skateboards go by multiple times a day and Cooper may give a half hearted attempt at chase, but stays in his yard. Trying to reward good behavior, over the last year we have been letting the dogs run without the collars. Yeah, my mistake.
Yesterday AH has gone on a food run and Cooper is outside waiting for his return. I am sitting at this very computer with a good view of the front yard and Cooper. I hear the sound of skateboard wheels, Cooper's deep WOOF and off he goes, right out into the street after the kid on the skateboard. I run out the door yelling his name and watch as he chases this kid (who is now moving at speeds that I was not aware a skateboard was capable of) for a block or two. Lucky for all of us Cooper is great at a sprint, but not so much for the long haul. He got tired and happily came home. And when I say happy, I mean he was SO happy it was just ridiculous. He could have cared less that he was in serious trouble. Samten, on the other hand, who had stayed in his yard like a good dog, was hiding under the table with his eyes covered while I scolded Cooper.
The good news: the new dog food that we have recently switched them to (Blue) is clearly working to make Cooper stronger and free of the hip pain he had been suffering from.
Bad news?: the collars are back on both dogs. Samten is not amused.
Comments