Friday the 10th. July.
11 pm
I’m home. The guys went to sleep around 9:30. Clean up was deferred until morning, so they wouldn’t be disturbed. Washing dishes in the morning is easy enough. The pee pads both got changed after the gaming died down, and both water dishes needed maintenance, so those things were already done. Food went into the trash, bowls in the sink, and the daily trash went out.
8 pm
Woof. Energy burst!
We (they) were running full-sprint around the house. Chase and gatekeeper. I caught Bubba in the bedroom and put him up on the bed, and he turned that into a lot of fun. He’d come to the foot of the bed and “pounce” at me. Then I would pounce back, and he would run away, hoping over the folds in the comforter and the pillows with grandiose leaps. I got the sense he was like a little boy with his imagination, he was bounding over great obstacles. He’d reach the far end of the bed and spin, landing in combat-ready position. Then he’d run at me, and we’d repeat this.
Buddy would run in, taunt me with the bunny and dash back to the living room. A bit unfair since he was already inside the gatekeeper, but he was having fun and getting exercise. I tired out first, tonight. Bubba took his combat mode outside and began barking at something or someone. Buddy ran out to join him, and started barking, too. By the time I got outside whatever it was was already gone. It may have just been more of the game.
4:35 pm
As soon as dinner was out, the guys wanted to walk. Dinner went untouched, but both guys drank some water before we left. We stayed in the neighborhood, wandering in and out of pathways, repeating a couple of pathways, and staying around the pool quite a bit.
Both guys pooped, 3rd time each for the guys.
2:50 pm
Bubba had been sleeping in the bedroom, and came out. He wanted up on the couch, where Buddy was already sleeping, and had been sleeping all morning. I was in the recliner, and Bubba came over to me for help. I thought he might choose to camp out on this end of the sofa and hang out with me. But he wanted his perch. He didn’t even bother with the pretense of asking – he just jumped up and Buddy scrambled down. Buddy came down to the far end of the sofa to get some approval chin scratches from me, then he curled up and went to sleep on the seat cushion.
Half an hour later, Bubba got up from his name, and moved down to where Buddy was resting. Buddy watched him come. Bubba walked right up next to Buddy, then let out one, very loud, very sharp bark. Buddy was a squatter in Bubba’s protected space. Buddy jumped right off the couch like it was on fire. The Alpha stood and looked at both of us, as if offering a chip on his shoulder to anyone that wanted to challenge his authority, then he returned to the perch go to back to sleep.
11 am-ish
It’s misting. It’s very gray, but doesn’t look like rain, but there’s moisture. Probably not enough to keep the guys from walking, but I’m glad they both pooped twice this morning, just in case.
8:40 am
I was slightly late. It mattered to Buddy. He was wide awake and ready to go. I could hear him jump off the recliner and run across to the front door. I opened the door just-a-wee-bit and he cocked his head to the side so he could peek through with one eye. His thirst for immediately knowledge is wonderful to witness.
For Bubba, I could probably have been 6 hours late and he would have been fine with it. He was hidden under the blankets in the fireplace bed. But my arrival caused him to be awakened very rudely. Buddy obviously wanted to go out, but ran away from me when I got out his harness. I sat down in the recliner. He immediately came out of his safe-place bed to come say hi. I rubbed and scratched the face for a bit, then he ran over to where Bubba was in a deep sleep, and without a flicker of hesitation torpedoed Bubba with a snout. Poor Bubba jumped up in panic, unable to see because of the blankets. He fought to get his face out to see. His face peeked out and his eyes were wide open and surveying the scene. His face scanned back and forth in the room. He would stop when his nose was pointed towards the door and he would sniff heavily. I think he could smell that I was there, but his eyes weren’t focusing when they passed over me in the recliner.
He climbed out of the bed, jabbed back at Buddy who was playing like a puppy – too early for Bubba’s liking. Then Bubba came over to say hi to me. He was ready to walk, already over the rude jolting that tore him away from his rest.
We went across the street. We only walked about a quarter of the way across the park before they turned back. I didn’t keep track of the time. Both guys pooped twice each, from ‘never’ to twice in two days.