Welcome to Dogstar’s Wednesday Dog! Every Wednesday, we share a story from one of our dog stars. This week we’re talking about Nicole and her two rescue dogs, Mac and Rosa.
Living with dogs means learning their language, but more importantly, it means realizing that they have learned ours. I’ve heard people say that dogs don’t understand English, but I’m sure those people have never owned a dog. In our homes, like many homes with dogs, there is one word we dare not to speak unless we are fully prepared. walk. Even whispers can quickly cause serious dog confusion if your dog is in a room or is being spoken softly when in another room. Its tail swings, dances, whining, talking, barking, running back and forth through the door, running around again and again.
We changed tactics for a while and started a spellwalk. It lasted for a few months, but Mac quickly got caught up in it, so you can add “I know how to spell important words” to your resume. Rosa cannot spell out, but she is sharp as a tuck to understand Mac’s excitement, and all he has to do is for her to stand up quickly to join him.
It really doesn’t matter whether I write about a “stroll.” Now, the simple act of wearing my activewear will drive your dog crazy. It is very overwhelming, especially if you wear activewear just for comfort or yoga practice. There’s no need to disappoint them.
The evolution of walking in our home
When we first got Rosa, she hated walking. We have a lot of land with trails and fields, and we try to get her to take her off at the point to see if she likes it or not. Every time we wait until we are distracted by birds and clouds, she waits every time and goes back home to book. But we never worried. Having a homing dog is easy, but it really didn’t help us with our own personal fitness.
When Mac arrived he was very interested in walking, but could not be trusted by the leaves. He was as opposite of the “homing dog” as we could imagine, but eventually returned, but he had to run to the horizon before resting his head at the entrance.
For months, we felt that Walk was a comedy show. We kicked one dog out the door with a snack, slowly left the house in hopes of us changing our minds and turning around, and kicking out the other dogs we couldn’t do. We walked out the door quickly enough and as soon as we realized we were home we walked as slowly as possible.
But over time we were able to convince Rosa that the walk was fun and convince Mac that we had walked him long enough.
Rosa and Mac even became my running buddies. I take them and my daughter to the pram (I’m a sucker of punishment, obviously). Rosa is a great pacesetter and perhaps can easily run the marathon. She is a grazing dog breed, so it is in her DNA. Mac, on the other hand, gets very excited and sprints through the first leg of any run, by 4-5km he’s my resistance training. But it’s a matter of suiting your dog. Our 20-minute walk to the paddock is no longer tired and they need a few kilometres a day to be satisfied. In other words, we need a few kilometres a day too. Beware of what you want!
It’s overwhelming as a chaotic, but I love the feeling of excitement that our puppies get when we say walk (And take them for walks and runs). I know that as they get older, the frenzy becomes more manageable and that is a sign that they will slow down. So for now, I’m reminding me to enjoy it, and I’ll probably say the whole thing from time to time to get a response – I’m just kidding, I’ll take them for a walk, me Not a monster!
Does your dog respond when you say the words? Let us know in the comments below!
This article features Nicole, Mac and Rosa in Wednesday’s Dog Star series.
