The Magical Dog

Our usual dog pack consists of 2 dogs --a sweet, elderly Labrador, and a comical Basset Hound. When D1 is home, our pack expands to 3, with the cute puppy Madeleine, the King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.

These types of spaniels were bred to be lapdogs, and companions, and Madeleine excels in both areas. She LOVES to be around people, and I haven't met the person yet she can't make happier. Wifey took her to Cara's yesterday, to help soften the grieving over Cara's husband's death, and she said it worked! Cara laughed and cuddled with the puppy. Wifey also claims that Madeleine in the house causes a quantitative decrease in D2's surliness. Now THAT'S impressive!

My morning routine consists of feeding the 3 dogs, putting the coffee on, and then walking to my front gate to fetch the morning paper. Typically the Lab follows me closely, while the Hound and the Spaniel wander around the front of the house, and meet me on the front porch. The three then frolic while I drink my coffee and read my paper.

Today, I sat down, and the Spaniel was missing. She usually follows the waddling Basset, but, alas, no Madeleine. Wifey had warned me that the puppy can fit through the bars of the front gate, so I had awful visions of a flattened dog behind a speeding garbage truck. I walked around to investigate.

Uh oh: no Madeleine. I thought of D1 sleeping sweetly in her room, dreaming the dreams of a 21 year old near college graduate, and how I would have to ruin her morning with the news of a missing puppy.

I walked back to the house, and there, behind the door, was Madeleine! It's magic, I thought. How did she manage this sleight of paw?

It turns out the back gate was left open, and she ran to the back of the house, walked in the rear family room door, and came looking for the rest of her pack.

Ah --reunited. The missing Cavalier story had a happy ending.

And as I write this, all 3 dogs are napping, awaiting the next adventure.

Wifey and I are heading to a cemetery west of MIA, to say goodbye to Jack. The planes fly very low over the cemetery --it's directly below the main landing pattern.

A sad way to spend a day...