Hello Jacksonville! And hello Fall. What a great Summer it’s been.
Thought I'd help Mom pay the bills...
You may (or may not) know that I had surgery for hip dysplasia when I was nine months old. Because of my weird hips, I don’t jump very much…although, I have grown fond of jumping on the bed at night for a little cuddle time. My parents even need to lift me up into the back of the car, as I get nervous jumping that high into their SUVs.
So – you can imagine my mom’s surprise the other day when I suddenly jumped over the railing on our deck and landed in the shrubs below. If you know my mom, you know she’s not often speechless – but her mouth was hanging open in disbelief. Our deck is pretty high off the ground, and the railing is an easy four feet high – so I probably cleared about eight feet in all. What added to my mom’s surprise, I guess, was that I didn’t really look where I was going – I was focused upward at a bird that was WAY up in the sky. I was barking and running, and well, just kept going up and over!
After landing, I was confused about how I got down in the garden and headed to a patch of green grass to think it over. Then, I just kind of crumpled up and started vigorously licking my left front foot…it just felt funny. I thought I had stepped on a rock or a thorn or something sharp. My mom helped me limp back to the house where I followed her everywhere, as I knew she would make it better…and she did!
Mom made sure nothing was stuck on my paw, and noticed it was twitching when I laid down. So she wrapped my paw in a cold pack (which I didn’t like too much) and stayed close so I would rest. She also gave me my favorite thing – my Kong toy with peanut butter and a treat inside to distract me. Next thing you know, I was walking gingerly around, then faster, then running as my crazy old self!
Such excitement for one day!
I hope you and your dog friends had a fabulous summer with fun adventures in our Small Town with Big Atmosphere.