October Showers

October has been a damp and rainy month so far.  There has been no happy scamper of little white feet out into the back yard.

We carry Dasa in and out a lot because she’s so unstable and wobbly.  Even so, my brave little girl will occasionally scratch at the door to potty on the grass. Dasa’s health is declining, therefore we’re used to accidents from our sweet baby girl. But not our baby boy. 

However, one day last week Aunt Susan was hanging out with the Munchkins for a few hours. She tried numerous times with various treats to lure our boy out. Nothing doing. Ivan was so unimpressed with her offerings he finally peed on the bedroom floor. I came home just as Susan was putting away the carpet shampooer. Doting aunt that she is, Susan blamed this incident on her inability to produce the appropriate high value treats.

 I got out a leash and waived treats enticingly. Ivan balked at the end of the leash like a little pony. He knew resistance was futile, but felt compelled to protest nonetheless. Treats in hand, I told my puppy boy that yes, truly, his heartless mom was forcing him out onto the squishy lawn.  We wound through the flower bed next to the patio, Ivan hugging the house so closely his right side was nearly horizontal.  With an aggrieved expression, he peed on an arborvitae and then dragged me through the lilies back to the house.

Ivan on a rainy day

Ivan seems to think the wet grass is there just to torture him. As the rainy weather dragged on, Ivan became more and more selective about which treats were worth getting his feet wet. No ordinary treats were worth considering, but those crunchy little salmon treats were very tempting. On yet another damp morning I stood on the patio and held out a salmon treat, coaxing my boy. He came close to the open door, but stopped short of any body part entering the danger zone. I put a treat on the far edge of the step.  He stood in the doorway and leaned forward, stretching his neck. No luck.  He reached out and pawed at the air, trying to reach the treat. At last he stepped out of the house to grab the treat. I nudged his fuzzy little butt clear and closed the door behind him. He was quite displeased by this traitorous act of betrayal. Muttering about the injustice of it all, he stepped out onto the grass.

As always, Ivan insists on walks, certain there must be dry grass out there somewhere. He is repeatedly shocked and dismayed to discover it also rains in front of the house and all down the street as well.  We check both sides of the street several times, but alas, there is water everywhere. Confound it.

 Today, just when Ivan was sure the rain would last forever, the sun peeked out. Thank heavens.