Pet Stories IV

So the saga continues.....

Well, before I share any more stories about Fritz, I will have to introduce you to our other dog, Shilo. Shilo was a pure bred Golden Retriever, and a fuzzy,little butter ball. 'Butterball' ended up being my nickname for her! I named her on my way home from picking her up, when the Neil Diamond song "Shilo" came on the radio. I have always loved Neil Diamond's music, so it seemed fitting.

Shilo as a puppy (okay, even as she got older) always rested or slept a lot. When she was a puppy, I would run over and check to see if she was still breathing. I don't know what she was storing her energy up for, but she slept a lot. Dave always said that she was so laid back that she would probably be dead for a week before she realized it...When Shilo was 8 years old, we heard her bark for the first time (scared me to death); she had never barked before, and I could only figure that it was because Fritz barked all the time! Shilo was a sweetheart, loyal and loving and very mellow.

Fritz and Shilo were great camping dogs, they never wandered off and loved being out in the wilds. One weekend we decided we were going to go camping at Mt. Palomar. Friday night was great, Saturday it started raining so we spent a lot of time in the tent playing cards and stuff.....It kept raining (fairly hard), and at one point the side of our tent caved in. We got out of the tent to find that Fritz was laying on the tent, trying to stay dry. When we shoo'd him off the tent he went and wrapped himself around one of those barbque stands that you find in campgrounds.... We watched Fritz for a minute and then I started looking for Shilo. I didn't see her anywhere; so Dave and I started calling her. We were a little surprised because she wasn't one to wander off....And we were right, she hadn't wandered off. After calling a couple of times we witnessed this mound of mud rise up from a little depression in the campsite. Pink tongue hanging out and ears perking up, there was Shilo, every inch of her covered in mud....But she was happy!.

Fritz hated water; Shilo loved the water.

When it was bath time, I would say; 'Shilo, bath time', and she would run and jump into the tub waiting for me to turn on the water....Fritz? You mention the word 'bath', and you spent hours trying to 'catch' him....

When we lived in Parker, CO, we lived near Cherry Creek and would take the dogs for walks down by the stream. Shilo would immediately lay down in the water; Fritz on the other hand would be looking for stepping stones to get across.

Fritz was smart (too smart); Shilo...was loyal. Fritz used to love to take off across the fields (tall grass) making sure that Shilo was right behind him (he would wait for her if she wasn't), then a few minutes later, Fritz would show up without Shilo. We would then start calling and calling her until she got back. We swear Fritz was trying to lose her so he could be an 'only dog'.

One of the funniest incidence during our walks (with the dogs) down by the stream was during one winter. The creek was frozen over, of course Shilo managed to find an opening in the ice and layed down in the cold water; icicles forming on her coat. There was a flock of Canadian Geese about 200 yards away from us sitting on the frozen creek. Fritz saw them at the same time we did, but before we could grab him, he took off down the ice after them.....One of the large male geese turned as Fritz approached and opened his wings making those threatening wing flaps that they do, and hissing. We don't think Fritz realized how big those geese were (they look pretty small at a distance) until he got close. When that male started flapping his wings, Fritz started to back peddle on the ice. Of course there isn't much traction on ice and next thing Fritz is on the ice sliding into the geese. Both parties were unharmed, and needless to say Fritz didn't chase geese anymore. And we had a good laugh at his experience!

More water stories:
Dave loves to fly-fish so we would visit many of the great rivers in the Colorado mountains. Because Dave fishing and Shilo splashing about in the river didn't work, I usually took the dogs up or downstream a ways so as to scare the fish in Dave's general direction. The South Platte was one of Dave's favorites, and there were some lovely shallow spots in the river, such that I could wear waders and take the dogs across the river to play. Hhmmmmm......Fritz and water.....Shilo would follow me right across the river. Fritz would disappear and eventually show up on the other side (perfectly dry); I never saw him; but I assume he found 'stepping' stones somewhere along the river!

One year we took a 2 week camping vacation with a friend and the dogs, driving through some of the most spectacular vista's the Rocky's have to offer. We visited Mt. Antero, the towns of Crystal and Marble and some ghost, mining towns. It was a wonderful trip, but it rained every afternoon. It got to a point we had to stop in Salida to use the laundromat to dry our sleeping bags and clothes! Fritz managed to find somewhere to hide from the rain; under the vehicles, under the bbq stand, under tables, anything he could find....Shilo, yes you guessed it, always wet and muddy! I remember one night was particularly chilly and about 3am I got up to take care of nature. I looked around for Fritz and couldn't believe it...He was lying in the fire ring in the ashes, against the heated rocks...But the dummy was also sitting among some dying embers so he had singed fur spots in places....He didn't seem to care because he was warm.....

Well, that's it for this bit, more to come soon!