White Trash at Flat Rock

Here’s a link to one of Dolly’s recent videos As you will see, she is eager to play.

click to see the opposing placement

One of the challenges of working at home is the lack of office supplies located in a central cabinet. That feeling of “Cool, I always wanted sticky notes in tie-dye” is not yours anymore. You and you alone are responsible for your swag. It’s tough if you’re cheap.

 There is one product I wouldn’t want to do without, even though I have to go the office supply store and buy them on my own. Binder clips. The creative mind can find a myriad of uses for these little devils that come in multiple sizes. The smallest can be used instead of a stapler. Larger ones can take the place of the ubiquitous loose leaf binder. It’s just so irritating when one of the holes fails and the papers begin to fall out. Then there’s the whole challenge of making all those holes.

 But don’t let your imagination stop with collecting paper. After all, we were told the advent of the computer meant a paperless office, so it could be the binder clip is an endangered item. Let’s prevent that from happening.

 Use binder clips identify your pet. Choose one that fits comfortable on the collar. Using your hand-engraver purchased in the early ‘70s to identify your bicycle, put your pet’s name and your phone number on the clip before clipping it to her collar. If a neighbor’s dog is particularly annoying, place a binder clip with false information to the mal-adapted animal and set it loose.

Binder clips are useful for advanced overhead doorway cable routing. Choose large clips and run the cables through housing. Place one thumbtack on the molding at the top corner of each doorway. Hang a clip on each tack by one little wing. If your cables are in an advanced state of procreation you can daisy-chain multiple clips together by the other little wing. Be sure to check the weight limits on the thumbtack.

The possibilities are limitless. Please share your ideas. The winner of the best idea will receive a free rss feed to this blog.

Scroll down to chapter one to read the adventures in order!

Over the next few months we met up with the walkers several times a week. The blurry group gradually became a collection of individuals, each with an interesting take on life, each just a tad odd. Some came up more often than others.

Wendy was known as the dog-yeller. She kept tabs on everyone and everyone’s dogs. She was also the resident expert on all things Fitchburg and all things dog. Sometimes though, it was difficult to figure out what she was talking about.

“I’ve been coming up to these woods since I was little. I know every trail. My brother told me not to walk around alone up here. He’s a state cop. That’s ridiculous. I know these woods better than anyone.

“My father used to raise Brittanies. We always had Brittanies. The girl at the vet’s just got a pit. You don’t know if they are any good until they are two. They can turn any time, but if they reach two and they’re still good they’ll be okay.

“There’s a lawyer who lives over there, he has a mean dog and he wants us all to put our dogs on a leash. He just can’t control his dog, you know. Henry said we don’t have to leash our dogs.

“Oh, look at Dolly. DOLLY, DOLLY! What a good girl; go play with Star. STAR! Star doesn’t like to play. He only plays with his ball. Ruby thinks she’s a poodle too.”

“Who’s Ruby?” I finally got a word in edgewise. I didn’t remember seeing any dog named Ruby but that doesn’t always mean much.

“Oh, she’s a pit who only plays with poodles. She lives with Star’s sister. She’s always cold.”

“Yeah, Dolly hates the cold too. She shivers a lot,” I confided. “Her feet used to bleed in the snow until she toughened up.”

“Well, you have to let her sleep all the way under the covers with you,” Wendy advised.

“No way.” I was adamant. “She snores. No dogs in the bed.”

“Ruby sleeps under the covers.” It seemed like Wendy was becoming Dolly’s strongest advocate.

“Well, goody for Ruby. The Doll will just have to adapt. I’ll get her a fleece blanket.”

“They had some good ones at the Salvation Army,” Wendy recommended.

It would be some time before I got the complete cast of characters straightened out. As the weeks went by, it became increasingly obvious there was a group of us and a group of them.

Doll and I were one of ‘us.’

Bubba plays tug

Here’s a brief video of Dolly’s friend Bubba teaching Ken how to dispense treats and play tug and provide a comfy place to lay his weary head.

The saga of Dolly the pit bull continues. If you are new to the blog please read from the bottom up so you can follow the story. Enjoy!!

Doll- The Social Butterfly

As advertised there were dogs running free and their people were good with it. The pack welcomed Dolly on their own dog terms; butt-sniffing, running in circles, gratuitous barking and other expressions of general canine joy. Dolly sniffed, ran and barked with the best of them. She was a young and exuberant dog but the other dogs accepted this. After all, they were young once also. If she got too rambunctious somedog was sure to give her an “errr” and straighten her right out.

I was overwhelmed by the statements and advice being batted around.

 “Watch out, there is a woman who comes up here who is afraid of pits,” someone to my right said.

I turned to my left. “Well, Fiona is the alpha female, she’ll put Dolly in her place.” “NO! STAR BENNETT!” I stumbled in a startle reflex. Guess that was one of the dogs getting yelled at.

“Look, Dolly has a crush on Bruno. He’s awfully handsome but there’s nothing between his ears.”

The owners and dogs were a motley crew. A young family with a double stroller and three children gathered in the shade at the edge of the thick woods surrounding the reservoir.  Several women walked with leashes draped around their necks for easy access. One of them used a cane. A tall, thin man in a raggedy sweat suit kept watch over everybody. The dogs were just as diverse. A white standard poodle with an unfortunate haircut, several small dogs who stood their ground and didn’t say much. An older german shepherd mix was a slow-moving object. Large bounding dogs and some mid-sized models rounded out the canine mix.

The group gathered us in and took us for a walk around the pond. Sounds innocent, doesn’t it? Here was this pit bull, a dog with a “bad rap,” playing just like any other dog. The people broke into groups of two or three as the trail narrowed. The dogs cavorted and gamboled through the undergrowth, ran ahead on the path and came barreling back for treats. I kept a close eye on my dog, what if some other dog really annoyed her and something happened? What if she knocked over the woman with the cane?

As the group circled back to the parking area, the others took stock of us. We were the new kids on the block. The owners looked at each other, the dogs sniffed and butted. Nothing was said, but apparently we received the stamp of approval.

“We usually come up here around 10,” the man in the sweat suit said. “Every day.”

“Kody likes Dolly,” he continued. “She plays with him.”

“Um, who’s Kody?” I asked, still confused by the crowd. “Oh, him,” he replied pointing at the ambling shepherd mix.

“Oh, okay. We can come up sometimes then, but sometimes I have to work,” I said. “I know Dolly had a good time.”

I glanced at my watch. “Oh, my god. I’m going to be late for work! Dolly, get in the car, come on Dolly!”

One of the commandments from the trainer when Dolly came home was – no tug of war. It would get her all wound up and make her think she was in charge if she won.  Which she definately could have. She is strong.

After her meeting with Bubba and the joy the two animals showed playing tug with each other, I ignored the rule. We have a fine time playing tug although I cheat. She stays on the slippery wooden floor while I have much better traction in my shoes.

Then, I came across instructions on how to play tug with your dog. Seems like if you interact with your pet it should come naturally, but you can check out the directions here: http://www.naturaldogblog.com/blog/2007/07/how-to-play-tug-of-war-with-your-dog-and-have-the-happiest-dog-on-the-block/

Have fun.

So, he sent his picture. Notice the fierceness (not!) of the pit bull expression.

Bubba stopping to smell the flowers