Go for a walk in the rain!
Written by Pam on January 11, 2015
In this blog I want to talk about our dogs aging. How the older dog teaches us how to age – in a peaceful but meaningful way.
Our oldest HGT dog is Wilhelmina, affectionately we call her Mean. Mean is a phenomenal field golden who has taught us so much more than those reams of paper that we could have read – she is one of my first pups that come to me from my breeder friend, Cindy Almgren of Muddy Meadows Goldens.
Because of Means field training, she instinctively knows how to be resourceful and how to figure things out on her very own. As a puppy, she figured out how to – unlatch her kennel to let us know that the kennel door does not need to be closed as she was house-trained and only needed the kennel when she wanted time away from the pack; – to dig deep dens in the back yard – not just holes, but large dens and to teach the younger dogs that talent in digging; – and surprisingly to all of us was she wanted to be free and off lead so that she can run freely to the outer areas of our property to do all her business- totally away from the family’s den – at the farthest side of the property – and never to leave the property line – no matter the enticement on the adjacent property!
Because of Mean’s obedience training she will not only perform a command spot on but she constantly teaches us some untrained talents that amaze us each and every day! I can only relate Means actions to that of one of our favorite cartoon characters, Peter Pan. Peter Pan was always in a state of neoteny – meaning how some (of us) adults choose to live our lives with spikes of fun juvenile actions. Mean will always be a puppy at heart, but the leader of our HGT pack in stamina.
Mean continually teaches me how we are similar in the aging process – at almost 9 years old, Mean is still playful and dedicated to each one of us, even though that beautiful mahogany coat has those weaved in whites. Mean is the highest ranking dog here at HGT – she still sets the stage for every single HGT pup that joins us, she instills the correct socialization once the pups are eager to express those less desirable reactions to the world. She shows me, when things are not quite right. Amazingly, she will nudge me or bark when there is something that she deems is not right and will not stop the insistence until I do something. She also lets me know when she is not at her best and is not feeling well.
It could just be a change of diet that is needed or a visit to the vets, but for the most part Mean knows when intervention to her resourcefulness needs to take place. I really feel that because Mean is in my life, I actually sleep better, I probably weigh less and I get a lot of exercise with her and with the entire HGT pack! And because I feel that she certainly has something to do with the way I live my life, I always make sure she eats the very best affordable food and treats that make her happy and healthy. Here at HGT we are all aging – but we help our dogs’ age well and we too, age well, with each dog by our side!
If you are looking for a great dog food, please visit our Be&EatWell tab and look over the offerings by Life’s Abundance. At HGT we feel there is not another dog food out there that compares to the quality of Life’s products. Enjoy, Pam
