This week I had a fun innerview with a beautiful Golden Re-TREE-ver, Miss Murphy Bradshaw, who just celebrated her first birthday an, although she’s not puppy size anymore, she’s still a total puppy in most other ways. She’s very bouncy an ex-ZOO-berent, super frenly and waggy, an keeps forgettin’ to Not Jump Up cuzza bein’ so happy to meet new frens. Murphy zipped right out the front door to greet me an my assistant. She had soft, blonde fur an long silky ears. She wore a pink collar with fish on it, an held a gray shark stuffy in her mouth.
“Heh-WHOOOH! WELL-cubb to by HOBE!!” she said as she bounced up for the Wag-an-Sniff, then bounced over to my assistant an Jumped Up. Of course, my assistant laughed an gave Murphy lotsa pats an ear friffles, which didn’t help the ongoin’ manners training her Mom was tryin’ to do.
“Good morning, Miss Murphy,” I said. “Happy buh-lated birthday!”
She puh-tooied the shark out. “Thank you, Mr. Bonzo! I usually carry something in my mouth cuzza bein’ a bird dog. It’s an in-stink! I hadda fun birthday pardy: wore a pink bandanna anna gold crown! I got toys anna duh-lishus Pup Cup. Ooops, I almost forgot to innerduce my famly!”
“That’d be great,” I replied.
“This is my Mom, Laura. My Dad Brad’s huntin’ in Ala-BAM-uh, like he does every year. An this is my big brother, Lucky.” (Lucky was snoozin’ nearby.) “At first, when I was a real liddle pupper, I was SOOO Bouncy an ram-BUNK-shus it made him grumpy an he’d grrr at me. Now we’re Besties. I also have human brothers, Kurt an Andrew, anna sister, Ainsley. They’re grown-ups. I’ve met Andrew an Ainsley an I’m gonna meet Kurt at Christmuss.”
“Woof, that’ll be fun!” I said. “So how did you an your Furever Famly find each other?”
“Lemme see if I remember the whole tail. It’s pretty Cool Kibbles. A buncha years ago, my Furever Dad was up in Ala-BAM-uh, on this dirt road in the middle of Bummfluff Nowhere when he came across this dog, all buh-draggled an weak an dirty an stuff. So he rescued her an brought her home, an him an Mom took good care of her an named her Allie. She had a nice long, happy life before she hadda go to Dog Heaven. THEN, buh-leeve it or not Mr. Bonzo, in 2017, Dad was in Ala-BAM-uh again an, on that Very Same Dirt Road, he spotted Lucky, lost an in Really Bad Shape just like Allie. An now he’s all happy, too!”
Lucky lifted his head from his paws long enough to say, “You bet your biscuits I am. I totally won the Pooch Lottery, I can tell you.” He then re-zoomed his snooze.
“Woof! Miss Murphy, that is a Totally Amazing Tail! So how’d you join the famly?”
“Mom was wantin’ a puppy who’d be a pal for Lucky. Mom an Dad usually got rescue pooches but Mom had had five Golden Re-TREE-vers when she was growin’ up an she had fond mem-rees, so she was sorta PAR-shull. Unbeknownst to Mom, Dad found out about a litter of Goldens with a nearby famly: 10 puppers. Mom’s a teacher an it was during Christmuss school break an Dad picked me cuzza me bein’ the most adorable. Then, Christmuss morning, Mom was getting outta the shower an Dad brought me in as a suh-PRISE!”
“Best. Present. EVER.” I exclaimed.
“Totally. An, not to brag, but us Goldens are real smart. I learned stuff fast. Basic Dog Stuff:
Leash walkin’. Doing my Dooty, Sit. Stay. Paw. I don’t chew my toys up. Or shoes. Or the couch.
(Dad says if I get enough exercise I won’t get bored an chew stuff).”
“Makes sense,” I agreed.
“Me an Mom have this game I never get tired of: She piles all my toys in my Toy Basket, then I very carefully pick up each toy, one by one, an place it elsewhere in the house, different places every time, for vuh-riety. I also Fetch, Return AND (usually) Drop. I’m still workin’ on Don’t Jump Up, you probly noticed.”
“Well, you still gotta lotta puppy in you, Miss Murphy. Any pooch pals? Whaddya do for fun?”
“I get along great with humans an fellow pooches. Me an Luke hang out. He’s a Chesapeake Lab who lives around the corner. When we visit Uncle James an Aunt Cathy I get to go swimmin’ in the ocean. When I visit Stella, a yellow lab, we swim in her pool. An me an Lucky Totally Love goin’ out on our boat. We sit on the bow and feel the wind in our ears an sometimes go to an island an run around pretendin’ we’re fuh-row-shus pie-rats.
“Me an Lucky also get to drive with Mom down to the Fort Pierce Farmers Market. It’s right on the river an they are Very Pooch Frenly.
“One of my favrite adventures with Mom was on the last day of school. I got to go with her an meet all the liddle humans in her class. They were PAWSOME. Then Mom read a story about a dog named Winn-Dixie. It was called ‘Because of Winn-Dixie’ an it’s about making frens an learnin’ about litter-ruh-chur. I had The Best Time!”
“Woof! That sounds So Crispy Biscuits!”
“I’m also a Watch Dog,” she continued. “When there’s a knock on the door I do a few Very Big, Loud Barks, then Mom or Dad can check to be sure it’s not Stranger Danger.
“Ackshully, Mr. Bonzo. I am a Daddy’s Grrrl. Of course, I totally love Mom: She takes me for walks an pruh-pares my duh-licious food. But when Dad’s home, I just wanna play an snuggle with him.”
Heading home, I was thinkin’ about all the ways pooches and their Forever Families find each other: from a chance meeting onna country road to being picked outta a litter of 10. It never ceases to amaze me.
Till next time,
