Tuesday, March 6, 2012

My Dog Bruno Really Stinks

Actually, no he doesn’t really stink—at least not in the metaphorical sense. He does, occasionally, smell foul. More on that later. He’s actually a sweet, lovable, eager-to-please softy and we adore him.

The title of the blog came to be when S. reworded one of her piano pieces into a catchy little ditty. Now, whenever I think of Bruno, I hear
                My dog Bruno really stinks
                ‘Cause he chases all the skinks.
                My dog Bruno really stinks
                ‘Cause he won’t fit in the sinks.

He is just as much a quirky individual as the rest of the family, though, so he deserves his fifteen minutes of fame.

Bruno's mom--the Bassett with the Border collie dye job and extensions.
Pedigree—Well, he has one…we just don’t know what it might be. A friend found his mom, pregnant, at a gas station, took her home, and found homes for the puppies. Mama dog is clearly a Bassett hound/Border collie mix. In fact, she looks as if someone draped a Border collie suit over a Bassett hound. Theories on the dad include German shepherd, corgi, Labrador, and Chihuahua. Just kidding on the Chihuahua—I think.

He’s definitely tri-color, though. He has hair to contrast with every color clothing!

Auspicious Beginnings—Being the studious people we are, we researched puppies thoroughly, and read Cesar Millan’s book on the topic. We knew that, for some very important reason, we needed to figure out if he’s driven by sight or by smell.

He is.

On the one hand, he subjects us each to a thorough smell-down when we come in the house. I sometimes feel like I’m permanently living in a military checkpoint with a bomb/ drug/ fast food-sniffing dog. We walk him a mile morning and night, and he’d happily do the whole thing with his nose to the ground.

But he points! We walk in the dark before dawn most days and he’ll freeze, paw up, eyes fixed on something a block away. Something I can't see. This makes a great excuse for him to spook, jump, and pull humans down when he sees…anything.

Dr. Bassett and Mr. Collie—I wanted a dog that could be described as “a furry carpet with a heartbeat.” You know, low energy, tolerant, and submissive. That’s exactly what I got…when the Bassett half rules. When the Border collie kicks in—holy moly.

When the Bassett hound rules...
On the bright side, he’ll throw his own toys and then catch them. We’ve found the missed ones on top of the tables, the counters, the tv…and the six-foot bookshelves. He’s also been known to leap over small children. Who are standing upright. And, yes, he chases the skinks like a pro. He chases them right off the porch and into the house.

Now you know about the skinks. Tomorrow, in Part Two, we'll get to the stinks.

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