First a quick Bark-Out to all you Sea Oaks pups on another successful Sea Oaks Dog Walk. Good job, Poocheroos! My English Cocker pal Tess Patota, who’s Chairdog of the event committee, tells me you pooches raised more than $2,000 for the Vero Beach Humane Society! Way to Woof!
Now, then, I can’t wait to tell you about this week’s interviewee, Murphy Hatten. She’s a sweet, laid-back young pooch, almost 2. Murphy’s a White Lab and get this: She works in a DOCtor’s office, which is where we yapped. The receptionist led me and my assistant back to Murphy’s office, and she came right up for the Wag-and-Sniff.
“Hey, y’all. Welcome! Ah’m Murphy and this is mah Dad, Paul. He’s a people doctor. Mah Mom’s Dell. Just have a seat. Ah’ve nevuh had an INNUH-view before. Dad says it’s just us yappin’, and me answerin’ questions.”
“That’s right, Miss Murphy. It’s real easy,” I told her, then added, “I couldn’t help but notice that cool drawl. Where’d you come from?”
She gave a big, friendly Lab grin. “Ah was born and bred at a nice place in Georgia. Mah Dad and Mom just love Labs. They’d had a black one and a yellow one and wanted a white one. They in-VES-tigated and Checked Stuff Out and finally found ME, online. Soon as ah was old enough, ah flew down to Florida to meet Mom and Dad for the first time.”
“Wow, Miss Murphy! You flew all by yourself?”
“Sure ‘nuf. The airplane humans were real nice, so it wasn’t scary. Mom and Dad picked me up at the air freight place on their way back from YOUR-up. Ah was still a pupster and, ah couldn’t wait to meet mah Forevah Family, but ah was nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room fulla rocking chairs. “
I had to laugh. “So what happened?”
“Mom and Dad were so kind! Ah was fine! AND, ah got a wonderful surprise when we got home. Ah have an olduh BROthuh! HUMphrey! He’s 3. He’s an English Cocker. We have the BEST time!
“And, DAD says I’m real smart, too. Ah’m Crate-Trained and Not Destructive, which he says is Very ImPORtant. Ah do like getting shoes outta the closet and bringing ‘um to the livin’ room. But ah NE-VUH chew ‘um. Ah have lots of stuffed toys. I specially like the zebra and the muppet, which ah also don’t chew. When mah human nieces and nephews come to visit – Katheryn, Elizabeth, Kevin and Henry – we play and play. Ah go get their toys and bring ‘um to the livin’ room with the shoes. The girls like to dress me up, which is real fun. But ah do sometimes get so excited ah Jump Up on ‘um, which Dad says is Not Good Manners. Ah’m still workin’ on that, cuz ah can accidently knock ‘um right oveh. Dad got me uh vibratin’ collar to keep me from jumpin’ on folks. It sure works. It’s just that ah really love People. Ack-shully, ah think that’s why ah got such a fun job!”
“I heard about that. What exactly do you do?”
“Ah work with the Indian River Radiology staff to insure Smooth and Efficient Operation of the office. I’m not involved in diRECT patient care or in reviewin’ X-rays, Dad does that. But lots of patients really like me and wanna stop and say Hello. They’re always poppin’ into mah office. Sometimes I greet patients in the waitin’ room. Seein’ me makes ‘um feel happy. On break, ah snooze under Dad’s feet while he’s workin’ at his computer. Ah’m the O-FISH-ul Mascot of IRR and, as you can see, ah always wear my work uniiform – my White Lab Coat! Get it?”
I did. We laughed.
“Whaddya do when you’re off work?”
“Ah LOVE the Dog Park. The Big Dog side. Me and other Labs and some Great Danes run all ovuh the place. Rambo’s one of mah Great Dane pals. Sometimes human puppies are there, too, and I hafta be careful not to bounce on ‘um. Me and Mom and Dad go for walks on the beach in the mornin’. I chase birds and dig in the sand. I dig a LOTTA sand, so Dad hasta hose me off.
“Oh, and ah take classes, too, at PawPrints. That’s where ah’m learning Manners and Obedience. The best part is the Obstacle course.
“Ah’m great at that, even the tunnels. Ah passed with flyin’ colors.
“But, last summer, when ah was much younger, Dad was tryin’ to teach me to walk right next to him with no leash. All of a sudden, mah Inner Wolf came out and ah Took Off Like a Flash. Ah was gone for hours and hours. Finally, a workman found me somewhere ah wasn’t s’posed to be and called Security. And I got arRESTed! Dad hadda come and bail me out. Thank Lassie, he convinced ‘um to expunge mah record since it was mah first offense. Woof, you bettuh believe ah never did THAT again!
“Now Dad and Mom take me to that cool Saturday Farmer’s Market. Lotsa other pooches go there, too, and we’re all Mostly Perfectly Mannered. Oh, and once, at Christmas, we were at the Mall and ah got to set on Santa’s lap, all by mahself, and tell him what ah wanted for Christmas. It was mostly big, yummy bones. Ah did ask for a peanut-butter bone, but ah didn’t get that yet. Come to think of it, ah don’t think ah got the Rin-Tin-Tin DVD yet, either.”
Heading home, I was remembering how cute Murphy’s drawl was. I could still hear her calling after us, “Y’all come back now, ya heah?”
Till next time,
The Bonz
