absolutely lucy
One of Mimi’s homework assignments for school tomorrow is to bring a picture of a dog. Of course, she has to bring a picture of Lucy since she’s the family dog. Upon searching for a picture of just Lucy I got to thinking about our many years with her. This 7-year-old dog that resides with our family has and will always have a love/hate relationship with me. Lucy continues to do things that irk me to no end. Many of you have been witness to her food thievery which she will never overcome. Countless times we have found her hiding in a corner because she knows she’s been very naughty by stealing food from the kitchen countertops. Lucy absolutely knows that this is wrong but still does it anyway because the gratification of people food far outweighs her punishment. Lately, we’ve discovered that Lucy has been obsessing over a landscaping nook in our yard surrounded by keystone. This dog has almost completely dug out the area including removing the keystone. Apparently, there is some creature living in the patch of land that is tormenting Lucy to no end. She doesn’t care that she will get disciplined for her actions. Again, her obsession is much more important than the consequences.
After many years with this dog it has become clear that she has a bit of OCD. When she hunts there is no way to deter her from the ultimate goal of finding birds. Mike literally has to shove food and water down her throat because she wants nothing other than to search out her feathered enemies. Her blood sugar gets so low that she’ll have a seizure if not properly nourished. Another obsession for Lucy is Mike. That dog wants nothing to do with anyone but him when he’s home. His arrival from work each day results in Lucy yelping and jumping at the door until she reaches him. Sometimes at night she’ll try to sneak under the covers with Mike while I’m still awake downstairs. When I try to coax her off the bed a little battle ensues. She growls and snaps at me. The only way to get her out of that bed is to either tempt her with treats or wake Mike up. I’d rather just find something down in the fridge than spend 10 minutes trying to wake Mike up.
What makes it all worth it though is that Mimi is utterly smitten with Lucy. Each day Lucy has to endure acts of “love” from Mimi such as lying on her, singing to her (“Looshy, Looshy!”), poking her in the face, pulling her ears, etc. I’d say Mimi spends a good half hour every single day alone with Lucy. Lucy usually takes it in stride with only a few growls and baring of the teeth. I think Lucy knows that Mimi means no harm.
All in all, Lucy is a pretty good dog. People who don’t live with her often comment on how “well-behaved” she is and how many tricks she can do. I just wish that after 7 years that she would realize that there are certain standards she must live by if she wants my unconditional love. Well, she already has that from Mike and Mimi, so that’s all that really matters to her.