I walked to the Starbucks today. It's only about a 10 minute walk from my house, but I rarely walk there. Partly because I also usually get my son a drink, and it would be cold(er) by the time I got it home. But also because it's become a morning routine to take my dog, Raven, with me in the car. She wasn't here today (cleaning day, so she's at doggie day care), so I didn't have to face her disappointment. She would be very upset if I stopped taking her to Starbucks, even though it's a brief ride. It's become part of her daily routine.
I'm not sure why I consider walking her to constitute exercise. The walk consists of a stroll punctuated by many, many abrupt stops. She eats everything (the more disgusting, the better), and most of her walk consists of hunting for stuff to eat. I get exasperated with my husband for taking her to the commercial areas near our house--and then he complains when she eats chicken bones, or food that fell on the ground, or paper wrappers. So I of course try to stay away from those areas--but now she's discovered what appears to be rabbit poop--little brown pellets that are everywhere, including our lawn. So instead of trolling near the Safeway, she trolls every grassy area. I can't win.
Today's WSJ had a discussion about winter dog coats. Another frivolous "lifestyle" feature for the rich. Oh, wait, I bought Raven a winter coat. But I didn't spend hundreds of dollars on it. OK, maybe $50. I tell her she looks like a beautiful princess; my husband thinks it's stupid and superfluous and hard to work with. The WSJ article indicated that dogs like her--black lab (some sort of mix in her case) don't need winter coats--they're built to withstand the cold. But it did say that older dogs might need coats. So that will be my new rationale. Raven's almost eleven, although she still has the energy of a puppy. A normal puppy, that is. When she was a puppy she was a terror.
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