Friday, April 03, 2009

Exercising the dog

So last night, I was down in the workshop at the Lair, loading up a little "socialist repellent" (.223 ammunition). Because it had been so nice out, I'd left the door to the outside openso that I could enjoy the breeze and hopefully flush out some of the cold damp that was down there.

Unfortunately, I hadn't contemplated one of the neighbors' numerous free-range feral cats coming in, but that's exactly what happened when I wasn't looking. I never realized that it was in until I'd shut the door and gone back upstairs. But eventually the cat tried to get out, and it wasn't quite quiet enough. I didn't hear it but Lagniappe apparently did and he jumped up from his rug and raced down the open basement stairs.

I knew enough to figure--correctly--that something was amiss, so I followed him, arriving downstairs just in time to witness the spectacle of a 100lb German Shepherd chasing a hysterical cat that was only managing to stay alive by turning faster than the Shepherd and going under and over furniture that slowed but did not stop the Shepherd.

Of course in the process, numerous things belonging to me were knocked over or jumped upon, but neither cat nor dog were heeding my entreaties to cease and desist.

Round and round the basement they went, into and out of the laundry room, through the crawlspace under the stairs, and several places where I would have bet money that no cat or dog could ever go. But such was the game that they defied several laws of physics...I almost felt like I was on the set of The Matrix watching these two go round and round.

Finally I opened the door to the outside, and the cat made it out a fraction of a second before I slammed the door back shut in Lagniappe's face. He appeared to be more than a little miffed that I'd robbed him of his prey, but life works like that when you're a dog and I suggested that he get over it. He went off to sulk.

Well today I got to be thinking that he'd probably gotten the rough equivalent of a half-hour walk during that little romp downstairs. And since he does need to drop a few pounds of winter-weight, I thought that he might do well if I actually acquired a cat solely for use as a workout buddy for him. So I just told him that I was going to buy a cat tomorrow."YOU WANT TO BUY A WHAT?!"

7 comments:

  1. Bwaahaha....that dog is such a character. He certainly seems to add a lot of laughter and excitement when he is around.
    I don't advocate you getting him his own cat though...even though the ensuing stories would probably be hilarious and give you plenty to write about. :-)

    Maybe you can just borrow the neighbor's cat from time to time on his birthday and other major holidays.

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  2. You want to buy a what?!? Exactly my reaction, too!

    That is one lucky cat!! And I am sure it probably crawled off somewhere and died from a heartache due to its close brush with death. hehe!!

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  3. I think that face says, "Yawn! You two bore me!"

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  4. I think that face says TWO cats. One for the pursuit and one to otherwise antagonize.

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  5. We had a similar incident a couple of years ago when a (possibly suicidal) chipmunk walked into the house through an open door, and 3 out of our 4 Newfoundlands commenced pursuit. (He managed to get away.)

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  6. You know if you do buy a cat, they will become best friends:)

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  7. Anonymous10:42 AM

    Makes me wish we'd had a dog like that after the alley cat our daughter drug home and we spent $700 getting spayed, de-loused and whatever else fixed pinched one off on the carpet.
    My wife picked it up like Fred Flintstone did Dino and to the porch it went.
    I think the coyotes got it.

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