Ha! We finally caught her! We caught Bisou in the act…of starting to poop in the house.
As you know if you follow these chronicles, Bisou\’s obsession with frogs is such that if I just let her out into the yard on the assumption that she will responsibly relieve herself she goes straight to the fish pond to chase frogs. And then poops in the house. And she\’s so fast and so discreet that we can never catch her in the act.
In the last couple of weeks, I have been taking her out on leash in the wind and rain, urging and encouraging (\”if t\’were done when \’tis done, then t\’were well t\’were done quickly,\” as Macbeth said) until she does the deed. And that has worked fine, except that it\’s terribly inconvenient.
This afternoon, after I fed the dogs, my husband and I were talking in the kitchen when Bisou trotted past us and into the living room, where she stepped onto her favorite Bokhara and adopted the characteristic crouch that every dog owner knows by heart. My husband bellowed \”No!\”. I shrieked \”Outside!!!\” at the top of my lungs and flung open the back door.
Bisou was so startled that she instantly contracted all the appropriate muscles–thus sparing our rug–and flew into the backyard. And, wouldn\’t you know it, even in the throes of her direst need, she made a beeline for the frogs. But I reminded her of what we were there for and she ran under a tree and did her business like a good dog.
Back in the house, as my husband and I were hoarsely congratulating ourselves, I noticed that Bisou was holding her tail between her legs, hunching her head between her shoulders, and generally trying to make herself invisible. We really had scared her. I took a treat out of the treat can and got down on my knees and patted my chest and she came running. And now she\’s sleeping peacefully next to me, digesting her dinner and, I hope, her lesson.
11 Responses
Congratulations to the two of you! (again, I LOVE the illustration!)
Waxwing, we were pretty pleased with ourselves. And thanks for the input on the drawings. I'm trying to decide whether to keep on doing them or just go back to 100% words.
No, you have to keep on doing them!!!!! They will make your book an even more charming and unique collection of musings.
Oh, please…more drawings. I love them. Love love love them. I am debating whether to get a puppy in a rescue shelter I saw. Between your blog and Blue Ridge Gal's blog about puppy poopiness I still have a strong feeling of attachment about her. Does that mean the goddess is given a nod to me?Jaimieb in IL
So fabulous that you caught the little red devil in the act! Hopefully she will remember being so startled and why, and that the learning will percolate through/past the frogs in her brain. And please keep up the drawings. They are wonderful and, yes, they will be beautiful in your book.
mrb, book???Jaimie, Listen to your gut, and get that puppy! All beings capable of raising our oxytocin levels unfortunately also poop. What kind of dog is she? And will you post pictures? (Let us know where.)Alix, \”the frogs in her brain\” made me laugh. I have brain FOG. Bisou has brain FROG.
Oh, I love the drawings too! And I noticed on your website that you sell cards of some of your drawings. I would definitely buy cards of the drawing of you (?) reading with the two dogs sleeping near you. (The drawing was great, but the blog entry was a classic. I made my brothers read it as we work through the issues of helping my 81 year old mother find a new dog to share her life after having had to put her most recent dog to sleep earlier this summer. )
Anonymous, glad you're enjoying the posts. Prints of the drawing you mentioned are available. Why don't you send me an e-mail and we'll talk about what you would like: lali@laligallery.com
P.S., Anonymous–I think it's great that you and your brothers are encouraging your mother to get another dog!
I can't believe how much that drawing looks like you and Ed and Bisou. Wonderful.
Indigo, it's the pens and notebook in his pocket that make Ed recognizable.