Category: Sparky (Page 1 of 53)

Sparky takes umbrage at my assertion that he has been slacking.  He says that while I was downstairs huffing paint fumes, he was forging for food in the snack pit.

Sparky goes on to suggest that if I need a distraction, we could go for a car ride.  Maybe Giant Eagle would give us another rotisserie chicken.

I post these Sparky-watches-me-cut-the-grass photos too often, but it’s impressive that Sparky knows what to do.  It’s completely counter to his natural instincts. 

Sparky likes to sniff around, chase rabbits or talk to people.  That’s what he does when we go outside.  When I cut the grass, Sparky sits there watching me mow.   He doesn’t lay down, wander off or get too close.  It’s abnormal.

My working theory is that Sparky likes to be included and he knows that I have to cut the grass, so he isn’t going to do anything stupid to get booted off of the team.

I left Sparky in the truck as I ran into the grocery store real quick. 

To be honest, Sparky was probably smiling at everybody who walked by, but I like to think he was waiting for me to come back.

We went to Menards to pick up a couple of pieces of aspen wood for the headboard.  I was being nice by picking up a bag of dog treats for Sparky.

Sparky made gagging sounds and said, “thunder chicken chow?  bleh!”

I guess a thunder chicken is a turkey.  The irony is if that if Sparky found turkey shit in the woods, he’d probably slurp it up like a jello shot.  Probably.  He really likes goose shit.

These treats are from Blue Buffalo, so they aren’t cheap.  Sparky is going to keep getting these until he comes around or refuses treats.

It’s a thunderstorm, so Sparky is sticking with me.  He stays within 2 feet of me without regard for decorum or our customary regard for privacy.

On the night watch, we encountered a skunk.  Luckily, I saw the skunk first.  Sparky never saw it, but when he picked up the scent, he really wanted to track it.   I had his leash, so we continued up to the house, but Sparky is thrilled that he scared off the intruder.  That’s how he tells the story, and he will be talking about this for days.

Sparky keeps his afternoons free to relax, but he is usually only 60% asleep.  Or 70%, who knows?  He naps with his eyes open so he doesn’t miss a car ride or any chance of food.  

Sparky may have been warn out from that exciting dawn patrol, or he thinks there is little chance of a car ride or more snacks.

Rabbit spotted near the central briar patch.  Sparky is getting much better at looking where I am pointing, rather than just looking at my hand.  The rabbit was pinned down in the brush.  Sparky tried a pincher movement to surround the rabbit, but since he is the only dog, the rabbit just ran away.

Sparky is pretty proud of himself because his strategy almost worked.

I ate a free apple off of the honey crisp tree that I planted 12 years ago.  Don’t get excited, bugs also like honey crisp apples, so very few are presentable.

I almost walked into a spider web.  That was exciting and I still have the creeps.

Sparky just told me that today is National Dog Day.  He says that he has been hinting around all day, but I wasn’t picking up on it. 

In my defense, Sparky is naturally charming and attentive, so it wasn’t obvious that he was being an extra good dog.

I will give him another piece of orange chicken to celebrate his day.