Tag: dogs

Puppies

The snow had cleared enough by Sunday that I was able to drive to a barely-shovelled parking lot near a subway station. Then subway service was being impeded by a huge crowds trying to get downtown to show support for the Iranian community. Despite these challenges, I carried on. I had puppies to visit!

My granddaughter Sophie had excitedly told me about a new sport – PuppyYoga! I had taken yoga classes when we lived in King City. I had heard about Hot Stone massage where hot stones were placed on your back to untie the knots. I had also read about Goat Yoga where baby goats climbed on your back to work out the kinks. But Puppy Yoga was a new one for me.

Sophie had gone with her mother in the fall. She enthused about lying on mats on the floor and trying to do yoga moves, as cute little golden retrievers climbed all over, snuggling into shoulders and tummies. So for Christmas I gave her an invitation to join me in an hour of Puppy Yoga. I found a “studio” near a subway stop where we could meet for our class, and a shawarma restaurant where we could have lunch afterwards. We were all set.

Our subway ride took us both longer than we had planned, due to the excessive crowds. We met at Yonge and Davisville and started walking. The sidewalks on our route were not in good shape: some cleared only a few inches wide, and some only stamped down into slippery grooves by earlier pedestrians. After half an hour we found the studio and all the other participants waiting for us.

We arranged ourselves on our mats and the yoga instructor began with some simple stretches. As she moved into more formal yoga poses, the puppies arrived: brown and white British Pugs, some big, some tiny, began wandering around on our mats and under our feet. Yoga was quickly forgotten as everyone sat or lay on the floor and began patting and snuggling amidst “oohs” and “aahs.”

The yoga instructor kindly told us that it was OK to take some moments with the puppies in between Warrior and Goddess poses. She understood that the wrinkly little sweeties were our first priority. She encouraged us to take photos as often as we wanted. A couple of families had come to celebrate a birthday. They got special opportunities for group photos, surrounded by puppies.

Sophie was in love. She coaxed the little guys closer by jingling puppy toys in their direction. Soon she had one sleeping on her shoulder. Then a staff member realized that Sophie was wearing a hoodie and this spot would make a perfect picture. I began thinking that maybe we could sneak one home in this perfect pouch.

Our hour was up all too soon and we said a reluctant good bye to the puppies. Sophie and I headed towards the shawarma restaurant. But our challenges were not over – this restaurant was take-out only, with no seating. We tried a Mexican spot nearby – also without seating. So we had to settle for Tim Horton’s. But our minds weren’t on the food anyway – we were still thinking about how those cute little puppies had made our day.

Sue

Tobie’s Trip

Readers may remember stories of Venus the dog, or Missy and Sissy the mice, moving in with us for short-term stays. It has been lonely for a while, with just Peter and me, until an unfortunate circumstance changed all that.

In early July, Tobie, along with his two-legged father Dan, and brother Ben, was heading up from New York to visit for the summer, when their car broke down. This is not just any car; it’s a fairly new Mercedes with low mileage. It had no business breaking down. Furthermore it was loaded with stuff: summer clothes, water toys, Tobie’s dog bed, and even a big bass instrument so Ben could practice his new musical skill over the summer. And it was night.

Thanks to cell phones, the car was eventually towed to a dealership while Tobie and his family found a dog-loving motel for the rest of the night. But the next day the news about the car was not good. It would have to be towed back to New York City to be fixed.

It took Dan a couple of days to find a rental vehicle that was permitted to cross the border into Canada. He finally located a pick-up truck, with a big cab, but no cover on the back. Tobie and his family climbed into the cab, but the suitcases and bass had to go in the back. As soon as they set off, it began to rain. Dan drove quickly, hoping the wind would swoosh the rain away. Mostly it did.

Finally arriving in Canada, Dan dried off the cargo, and traded in the pick-up truck for a small sedan. He met up with his wife Jenny who had flown to Toronto a few days earlier, and they all settled into their summer home. After all that stress, Tobie was relieved to be in a familiar place with his dad. Meanwhile the Mercedes sat at the New York City dealership waiting for spare parts.

The summer came and went, and nothing else bad happened. Ben practiced on his bass and Tobie carried on with his life of eating and sleeping and sometimes walking. Then it was time to go back to New York. The Mercedes was now waiting for an entire new engine from Germany. The rental car was too small to take them all home along with their suitcases and bass and Tobie. And then it would have to be driven back to Canada anyway. There really was no option but to fly home. But what about the bass and Tobie? Should Dan pay for 2 extra seats on the plane, or stow them in cargo – to what fate?

Dear readers you already know the answer. The bass is sitting in our basement. As for Tobie, he has settled in quite well. He sleeps in his bed in our bedroom and hardly ever snores. He wanders around our back yard and sniffs. He licks the dinner plates before they go in the dishwasher. He has figured out how to take a running leap and land on the couch. He has made friends with several other dogs in the neighbourhood.

But mostly he waits by the front door, hoping his dad will come by in a vehicle, any vehicle, to pick him up.

Sue