Carpe Diem

I originally wrote this in July 2011. Since then Forest has been joined by Tiger, our brindle Boxer. Tiger is special - in the "short bus" sense - and has simply strengthened my feeling about the four-legged family members.

 

I believe dogs are the epitome of trust and faith. That is, in current civilization. Pre-civilization (and in some countries still) they were like all other wild animals, fending for themselves for food and shelter. Nowadays, they are our pets with many being, like mine, more a part of the family than “just a dog”. They rely on us for the basics as well as for companionship, love and fun. They wait patiently at home for us to get off work and wag tail incessantly when we do, hoping for just a minute or two of love, hugs and playtime.

Our dog is a Boxer. His name is Forest. He’s crazy, bouncy and playful. He is more like our furry, four-legged, mute son than our dog. We took a good amount of time and effort to train him which is very important. A dog’s only way of communicating with a person, and vice versa, can only be accomplished via training. And the easiest way to do this is for the person to understand how the dog thinks. We attended a training class when Forest was 6 months old that gave us the invaluable knowledge of a dogs’ point of view. Dogs have A.D.D. That’s just the way they are. Boxers have extreme A.D.D. and baby Boxers can’t focus to save their lives. So, little Forest graduated from his 6-week class, and, while I could tell he retained the knowledge, he was still too young to focus for any given amount of time. So, we continued working with him every day and he progressed perfectly.

I take Forest running with me every weekday morning. The exercise is excellent for him (and me, for that matter!) and definitely makes him a much happier dog. Dogs with no outlet for their energy tend to find other means of keeping themselves busy – like eating shoes or digging holes or barking incessantly. I truly believe that we have never had any behavior issues with him because we’ve always looked at exercise as a very basic need for him. I’m sure the collection of chew toys helped, too.

The single, most valuable thing that Forest has taught me is to seize the day – as they say, “Carpe Diem”. He lives in the moment. For a dog, of course, that’s a very easy thing to do. For a person, it’s not so simple. We have jobs and kids and bills to worry about. “I can’t possibly take the time for [insert your activity of choice here], I have dinner to fix and then dishes and laundry to do and lawn to mow…” Personally, I used to tie myself up in all the have-to’s and not only did it need to be done, but done correctly and well. (I have a “touch” of OCD.) I’ve learned that laundry is not life and death. If I plan well, we get dinner done easily in the evening. The house will not fall down if I don’t vacuum today. I didn’t used to know these things. I see life more through Forest’s eyes. If it’s nice outside, GO outside. There’s likely a sweet flower to smell. Or, in Forest’s case, a tree to pee on.

What has your pet taught you?