Thursday, July 17, 2008

A little Spencer love

There's a certain joy about dogs that I think maybe cat people don't get, or not as fully as the rest of us. I look at this smiling pic of Spencer (our boot camp mascot from the Adirondacks trip) - wet and smelly from rolling around in the bog - and I can't help but smile myself. He had a small army of admirers in us and was a good tonic during the quiet times or when some of us (me!) were feeling cranky. I like the company of a dog in the woods or a walk on the beach and I've missed the quiet, well-behaved sort of companionship that an older dog provides since Buddy died last summer. Luka is fun on walks, but he's not quiet enough for birds yet and insists on being the center of any attention with his goofiness. His specialty so far is comic-relief. (He's doing donuts on the bed as I type this!)

Anyway... it was fun to have Spencer along and he was properly spoiled by us all. Someone was always sneaking him a bite of lunch or quietly cajoling him into some mischief.

He made himself a favorite photographic subject of mine and would often follow my attention on a particular patch of wildflowers (here, bunchberries) with his own sort of joyful attention. Like a good dog, Spencer did a lot of rolling in stuff.

That rolling around and looking cute was a ploy of his and he used it to his advantage whenever possible. How can anyone resist a three-legged dog having so much fun?

Don't let the doleful expression fool you - that's another ploy! He's just trying to get you close enough for a splash.

One of my favorite pics from the trip - I think Linda's smile says it all. She's a dog person, obviously. She gets it.

;-)

7 comments:

Dave Dorsey said...

Dogs are everybodies best friend no matter what. :)

cedrorum said...

What a lucky dog. He looks like he's having a lot of fun.

Ruth said...

He is a handsome dog indeed. A three-legged dog enjoying life and spreading love and joy...good lesson.

R.Powers said...

I get it too.
He is beautiful.

"comic relief"
How true.

KGMom said...

Ahh--yes. There is a difference in having a dog and having a cat.
Remember the cute saying--dogs have owners; cats have staff.
Well, it's true.
I love my dog, and I love my cats.
Thank goodness, I can have both. I don't think I could choose between them!

NCmountainwoman said...

We can learn a lot from dogs. They adapt and make life fun despite their disabilities. Thanks for sharing the story of this brave and funny dog.

LauraHinNJ said...

Dave: Yeah, that what puts them in such sharp contrast to cats!

;-)

Cedrorum: I think he had a ball!

FC: Of course you get it - you have Labs.

;-)

KGMom: I had both growing up and shh (preferred the cats) but then I sort of fell in love with dogs for good.

NCMountainWoman: Yep - he made the trip much more fun.