Today I just want to talk for a minute about Bullies. Mr. Merriam-Webster describes a bully as “one habitually cruel to others who are weaker”. Like most of you, I have a few bullies in my life too. What’s that? You thought you were the only one that had to put up with those jerks? Not even close…

     Now, take Snowy – the 60 pound Australian Shepard next door. She’s probably a great dog but she takes advantage of her size and age. After all, she’s 4 times my age, and 10 times my size. Sometimes when I’m out in the backyard, her dad lets her out at the same time, to take care of ‘business’. You’d think that she’d stay in her yard, but she doesn’t.
She comes racing over to my yard at full speed, and just runs into me. She knocks me around like a rag doll. And that hurts. I just want to be friends and maybe play a little bit together. A little neighborhood gossip would be good too. But noooooo… she wants to do that Macho thing. One of these days I’m going to just get mad and run over her, knock her down, and see how she likes it! Oh sure – her dad always comes over and apologizes to my dad. But that doesn’t make ME feel any better.

     Just yesterday, she pulled that knocking-around thing. Angel and I were just out in the yard sniffing around and enjoying the springtime air. And here comes Snowy… she blindsided me, knocked me down, and just ran all over me. I cried and cried. Dad came running over and picked me up, and gave me the appropriate amount of cuddling and petting, and made me feel all better. But she still scared me a lot.

     Then there’s the midnight black Border Collie named Hershey that some man brings by my house two or three times a week. Hershey is so well trained, and usually minds his own business. But last Saturday, Hershey came by, he stopped across the road to take a break in the shade. Me and Angel went over to exchange pleasantries when Hershey jumped up and came at us. He didn’t hurt us or anything, but he did scare me. Angel, not being as smart as me, got all riled up, and let him know that we owned this road. She
was so mad! I thought she was going to beat Hershey up just for good measure. But, Hershey “only” being 12 times her size, quickly came to his senses and sat down. His dad uttered something like “down Hershey”, but I doubt that had anything to do with Hershey backing down. I bet he was just totally scared! As you can tell, Angel is a Bully too. She’s just mean. I guess that’s what I wanted to tell you in the first place.

     Sure there are other mean dogs. But I don’t have to live with them. I have to live with Angel. And she’s mean to me lots of times. I’m always so nice to her, and she’s always mean to me. When we go out to play, she’ll just run real fast all around me, trying to make me chase her. Being so nice, I usually don’t chase her. Sometimes I do though, and she’ll run from me for a little bit, and then start chasing me. BUT – I always make it to the Safe Zone. You do know what a Safe Zone is, don’t you? I have three Safe Zone’s here around home. If Angel and I are in the yard, and she starts chasing me, I’ll run to my dad’s truck. If I can get under the truck, she has to stop chasing me – that’s the rule. The truck’s SAFE – no chasing under the truck. Or if I’m on the other side of the house, Safe Zone is the back porch. If I can make it to the porch, I’m SAFE. No chasing there either. And the last Safe Zone is Mom’s lap. If we’re playing in the house and Angel gets too rough, and I can make it to Mom’s lap – I’m SAFE. I like that one best. You may be getting the idea that I’m a coward. That just isn’t true.

      I can be mean, and I am strong. But there are just some things that I don’t “care” to do – bully others around, and jump. I never jump if someone will pick me up and put me in their lap, or on the bed. If they won’t though, I can actually jump pretty good. Angel though, is the opposite. She’s so independent – she always wants to jump everywhere, and almost never lets anyone pick her up. She thinks she’s too big for that kind of stuff.
Now – you’re probably remembering stories about how I chased the coyote off (that’s right – I already had the coyote on the run before Angel ever got there – I don’t care what she said), and how I run the squirrels up the trees? Well – I don’t have to tell you how mean coyotes are. And squirrels have big ole teeth and long sharp claws. They may be 1/10th my size, but they are some kind of fierce creatures and not to be underestimated.

     But I never chase dogs that are smaller than me, and I never scare cats away. Remember how I let that big ole tomcat Mr. Tabby walk down my road? I could have beaten him up, or at least scared the wits out of him. But I didn’t. I’m just a nice kind of guy. Like I said in the story about “Cats and The Rats”……..“Don’t all of us creatures have to play together nicely”?
 

My Little Hunter

THIS IS SOME GOOD ADVICE!
 If a dog was the teacher you would learn stuff like:

* When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
* Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
* When it's in your best interest, practice obedience.
* Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
* Take naps and Stretch before rising.
* Run, romp, and play daily.
* Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
* Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
* On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
* On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
* When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
* No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout..! run right back and make friends.
* Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
* Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.
* Be loyal. Never pretend to be something you're not.
* If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
*When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.

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