Whispy day

Today is beautiful, even if it is a bit windy. My Whispy's want to be outside, so do Dibbs and Molly. Sparky and Junior would rather play ball in the house. The wind still makes them shiver.

I am cheap - I don't use my dryer unless I absolutely have to. With the sun and the wind, today is a perfect clothes on the line day. So, I have done two and a half tons of laundry and taken them out to dry. This sounds easy enough, but the reality is a bit different. The washer beeps, I take the clothes out and load it anew. Climb over the divider, take Molly to her run. Now Tippy, Tylor and Lissa are at the divider and barking and jumping. From inside the house answering barks can be heard. Open the divider, open the door - out they go. Now go back in the house and round up those who should go but don't want to. Sheria needs her leash to be convinced. Daisy and Sparky get carried. Junior has to be lifted off the bed or couch and then chased. Joy has to be woke up and carried out. When I put her down, I keep my hands on her for a minute, making sure she'll not fall over. She has gotten so frail over the last year.

One more trip in the house for the clothesbasket and we are ready - off to the clothesline we go.

The Whispy's in the lead - excitement up ahead! There is a loose plastic roof that is waving in the breeze - "Boy, I haven't seen that before - there is something moving!" Tylor is barking and growling and stomping her frontfeet on the ground. Like a little blond groundhog - how cute can you be? Tippy, in typical bossbitch manner, charges right up to the piece of plastic, ready to defend her daughter if need be. She hasn't made a sound yet. Once there, she decides that Tylor is a whimp and turns around to go look for better fun. "That mean woman fixed all the holes in the fence yesterday, I can't get in there now. Let's see, should I go dig under the birdfeeder or under the tarp?" She decides on the birdfeeder and soon is mighty busy. Dirt is flying and I get concerned that she will get under the fence. But so far, we are safe.

In the meantime, a car passes by the fence on the driveway. Everybody but Tippy is racing along the fence to make the most of this barking opportunity. Tylor is in the lead - she is faster then most of mine. Sheria kind of hangs back, she is too snooty to actually compete with anybody. The car passes and the dogs are looking for something else to bark at. And wouldn't you know it, obligingly a turkey vulture appears in the sky. Rather close to our house. The barking starts. Even Tippy stops digging for a minute, she doesn't get to see too many of these big birds. They run around the yard, in whatever direction the bird decides to fly. He finally has enough and leaves. Sometimes I think the birds do that on purpose. They fly just low enough to get the dogs attention and then circle around the yard a while to see what the dogs will do. Well, the dogs go nuts, that's what they do.

By now, the clothes are on the line and we can go back in the house. That means everybody gets a treat. My Whispy's are greedy little piglets, they push themselves in front of the other dogs and jump and just can't wait. Sparky only has three teeth left, so I have to break his treats in lots of little pieces. He races to the stack of clean underpads I keep in the bedroom - one has to be prepared, you know. There, on his throne, he patiently waits for me. I stumble over dogbodies on my way to give him his treat and on the way back. Next is Daisy. Her treats don't need to be as small, but she only has molars left and so I do break her treats up and throw them into her crate. Next - everybody else. Tylor is like Daisy - a stomach on four legs. She will take her treat, swallow it hole and try for another. "Oh no no no, no you don't!" Sheria is in the living room, she does not push and shove, she knows I will get to her.

By the time I have concocted something that Joy will drink, the blaming washer beeps again.......