Snortin' dogs

I had to take two of our four schnauzers (Marlee and Pierre) to the vet a little while ago for their yearly shots. That's always an adventure. They aren't the most demure creatures and they think every room that they have inhabited for more than 45 seconds has become their territory, so when they see other dogs they immediately start whining, barking, and snorting until they become certain I know their space has been invaded. I have them on leashes of course, but those do nothing to silence them or deflect attention.

At one point everyone in the waiting room was completely engrossed in a show on Animal Planet about a doggie rescue officer who saved a puppy from a neglectful owner's back yard, and just as the officer was about to explain the untimely death of another puppy in the same backyard, a woman and her greyhound exited from one of the exam rooms and Marlee and Pierre's whines snorts jolted us back to reality and we missed the end of this frustrating and tragic story. Perhaps it's best. I usually have to plug my ears and sing dee-dee-dees during animal abuse/death stories and if I would have heard the end of this story I probably would have been scarred for life. Happy puppy thoughts, happy puppy thoughts...

At one point the vet swabbed Marlee's ear and pulled out a huge chunk of balled up black gunk that was completely disgusting and utterly fascinating at the same time. Who knew she had that much storage space in there. That ear had been sensitive ever since she and Sophie got into a fight a few weeks ago, and the vet said bacteria from another dog's mouth could very well be the cause of the infection. Geesh. I hope Sophie is sorry for Marlee's pain, not to mention for adding another $40 to our vet bill. A glance under the microscope and gunk-fighting eardrops are pricey.

I don't know if we're prepared for human children. Perhaps it's the same type of adventure, only instead of watching Animal Planet in the waiting room we all watch Noggin. And we probably wouldn't use leashes. How will we know if we're ready for babies? Perhaps Marlee needs to get chicken pox next. That would be a great test. Kids.