Cuddling Up with Sparky During the Day
Last weekend it was downright hot in Munds Park, with highs around ninety and lows around fifty-five. When it was time to change the sheets on Tuesday, I took off the electric blanket and replaced it with a light, summer one. My electric blanket has dual controls, but I can’t save money by just heating my side of the bed. Sparky, my eight year-old shitzu-poodle, sleeps on the foot of the other side of the bed.
It’s been cold the past few days, with highs in the sixties and lows in the thirties. I rued my decision to put away the electric blanket but not enough to retrieve it and remake the bed.
I know that some people sleep with their dogs cuddled up beside them. I have a friend whose malti-poo “spoons” her. That’s just not my style. Sparky knows his place is at the bottom of the bed. I may be alone and sometimes lonely, but I will not spoon with a dog. I was forced to put on the wall heater in the bedroom to keep the temperature warm enough for sleeping.
However, I do enjoy the cool weather as an excuse, as if I need one, to cuddle my dog during the day. He jumps on my lap and put his paws on my shoulders, like he’s hugging me. On these chilly afternoons it’s the right blend of warmth and comfort.
He knows not to lick. I know where his tongue has been. The first dogs I owned were a pair of golden retrievers given to me by a neighbor who was moving to New York City. They were great dogs, sweet as a Boston cream pie. They did have some liabilities. Firstly, they shed. A lot! Secondly, they hunted ducks. I lived adjacent to Encanto Park in downtown Phoenix. I have to admit I let the dogs roam free there when they woke me at five in the morning. I stopped that when they each came back with ducks in their mouths. Thirdly, they ate whatever people food was within their reach. I fed them only dry dog food, but they helped themselves to birthday cakes and thawing ground beef. And lastly, they licked me and themselves. I would wake up in the middle of the night and hear them and shout, “Stop licking!” so I could get back to sleep.
After that dog owning experience, I got non-shedding puppies and trained them not to lick. But I did train them to cuddle. It’s one of the reasons to own a dog.